  The isolation of graphene and transition metal dichalcongenides has opened a
veritable world to a great number of layered materials which can be exfoliated,
manipulated, and stacked or combined at will. With continued explorations
expanding to include other layered materials with unique attributes, it is
becoming clear that no one material will fill all the post-silicon era
requirements. Here we review the properties and applications of layered,
quasi-one dimensional transition metal trichalcogenides (TMTCs) as novel
materials for next generation electronics and optoelectronics. The TMTCs
present a unique chain-like structure which gives the materials their quasi-one
dimensional properties such as high anisotropy ratios in conductivity and
linear dichroism. The range of band gaps spanned by this class of materials
(0.2 eV- 2 eV) makes them suitable for a wide variety of applications including
field-effect transistors, infrared, visible and ultraviolet photodetectors, and
unique applications related to their anisotropic properties which opens another
degree of freedom in the development of next generation electronics. In this
review we survey the historical development of these remarkable materials with
an emphasis on the recent activity generated by the isolation and
characterization of atomically thin titanium trisulfide (TiS3).
