Originating from the hexagonal arrangement of magnetic ions in the presence of strong spin
orbit coupling, α-RuCl3 is considered as model system for the Kitaev-Heisenberg model. While
the magnetic properties of α-RuCl3 have been studied in bulk single crystals or
micromechanically-exfoliated nanosheets, little is known about the nanosheets’ properties after
exfoliation by techniques suitable for mass production such as liquid phase exfoliation (LPE).
Here, we demonstrate sonication-assisted LPE on α-RuCl3 single crystals in an inert
atmosphere. Coupled with centrifugation-based size selection techniques, the accessible sizeand
thickness range is quantified by statistical atomic force microscopy. Individual nanosheets
obtained after centrifugation-based size selection are subjected to transmission electron
microscopy to confirm their structural integrity after the exfoliation. The results are combined
with bulk characterisation methods, including Raman and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and
powder diffraction experiments to evaluate the structural integrity of the nanosheets. We report
changes of the magnetic properties of the nanomaterial with nanosheet size, as well as
photospectroscopic metrics for the material concentration and average layer number.