  Since its fundamental inception from soap bubbles, Plateau law has sparked
extensive research in equilibrated states. However, most studies primarily
relied on liquids, foams or cellular structures, whereas its applicability has
yet to be explored in nano-scale solid films. Here, we observed a variant
Plateau law in networks of atomically thin domes made of solid two-dimensional
(2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). Discrete layer-dependent van der
Waals (vdWs) interaction energies were experimentally and theoretically
obtained for domes protruding in different TMD layers. Significant surface
tension differences from layer-dependent vdWs interaction energies manifest in
a variant of this fundamental law. Meanwhile, the remarkable mechanical
properties, gas impermeability and interlayer vdWs interaction energy of TMD
films enable domes and the networks to sustain high gas pressure and exist in a
fundamentally variant nature for several years. Our findings pave the way
towards exploring variant discretised states with applications in
opto-electro-mechanical devices.
