Penta-SiC5 monolayer: A novel quasi-planar indirect semiconductor with a tunable wide band gap

In this paper, by using of the first principles calculations in the framework of the density functional theory, we systematically investigated the structure, stability, electronic and optical properties of a novel two-dimensional pentagonal monolayer semiconductors namely penta-SiC₅ monolayer. Comparing elemental silicon, diamond, and previously reported 2D carbon allotropes, our calculation shows that the predicted penta-SiC₅ monolayer has a metastable nature. The calculated results indicate that the predicted monolayer is an indirect semiconductor with a wide band gap of about 2.82 eV by using Heyd–Scuseria–Ernzerhof (HSE06) hybrid functional level of theory which can be effectively tuned by external biaxial strains. The obtained exceptional electronic properties suggest penta-SiC₅ monolayer as promising candidates for application in new electronic devices in nano scale.