Login / Signup

The Physics behind the Modulation of Thermionic Current in Photodetectors Based on Graphene Embedded between Amorphous and Crystalline Silicon.

Teresa CrisciPiera MaccagnaniLuigi MorettiCaterina SummonteMariano GioffrèRita RizzoliMaurizio Casalino
Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) (2023)
In this work, we investigate a vertically illuminated near-infrared photodetector based on a graphene layer physically embedded between a crystalline and a hydrogenated silicon layer. Under near-infrared illumination, our devices show an unforeseen increase in the thermionic current. This effect has been ascribed to the lowering of the graphene/crystalline silicon Schottky barrier as the result of an upward shift in the graphene Fermi level induced by the charge carriers released from traps localized at the graphene/amorphous silicon interface under illumination. A complex model reproducing the experimental observations has been presented and discussed. Responsivity of our devices exhibits a maximum value of 27 mA/W at 1543 nm under an optical power of 8.7 μW, which could be further improved at lower optical power. Our findings offer new insights, highlighting at the same time a new detection mechanism which could be exploited for developing near-infrared silicon photodetectors suitable for power monitoring applications.
Keyphrases
  • room temperature
  • carbon nanotubes
  • ionic liquid
  • walled carbon nanotubes
  • high resolution
  • photodynamic therapy
  • high speed
  • quantum dots
  • solid state