Properties
Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is a naturally mined inorganic material that occurs as the mineral
Molybdenite. This crystalline solid is extracted from Henderson mine in Clear Creek County
approximately 50 miles west of Denver, Colorado. 6 Molybdenum disulfide has many unique properties,
which makes it one of the most popular solid film lubricants on the market today. Figure 1 shows the
crystal structure of Molybdenum disulfide.2 Molybdenum disulfide has a lamellar structure material
much like graphite and tungsten disulfide. Lamellar structured materials are ones containing layers which
alternate between different atoms. Its structure can be thought of as a series of layered sheets, with a
molybdenum layer sandwiched between two sulfur layers. These sheets are more commonly referred to
as basal planes, set up as a hexagonal crystalline structure. Each basal plane has a central atom
surrounded by six others.