This study investigates the charge transport in few-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) devices, focusing on the role of defect-induced localized states. Using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), density functional theory (DFT), and tight-binding calculations, the researchers provide evidence of sulfur vacancies (SVs) in MoS₂, which introduce localized donor states within the bandgap. At low carrier densities, transport is dominated by nearest-neighbour hopping at high temperatures and variable-range hopping (VRH) at low temperatures, consistent with Mott's formalism. The study reveals that short-range surface defects play a crucial role in tailoring the properties and device applications of MoS₂, highlighting the importance of improving sample quality through methods like chemical vapor deposition.This study investigates the charge transport in few-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) devices, focusing on the role of defect-induced localized states. Using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), density functional theory (DFT), and tight-binding calculations, the researchers provide evidence of sulfur vacancies (SVs) in MoS₂, which introduce localized donor states within the bandgap. At low carrier densities, transport is dominated by nearest-neighbour hopping at high temperatures and variable-range hopping (VRH) at low temperatures, consistent with Mott's formalism. The study reveals that short-range surface defects play a crucial role in tailoring the properties and device applications of MoS₂, highlighting the importance of improving sample quality through methods like chemical vapor deposition.