Fabrication of Cd(3)As(2) nanowires by direct vapor-solid growth, and their infrared absorption properties

In this work the authors introduce and provide details of the synthesis and spectral characterization of single-crystal nanowires in less common, high performance, group II-V semiconductors such as Cd(3)As(2). The growth mechanism critically deviates from a known vapor-liquid-solid one by being completely non-catalytic and involving only two states: vapor and solid. The resultant nanowires range from ～50 to 200?nm in diameter and reach lengths up to tens of micrometers, with their fast growth direction being normal to the (112) crystal planes. According to infrared (IR) optical absorption measurements, the nanowires have several IR active direct type light absorption transitions at 0.11, 0.28 and 0.54 eV, suggestive of their possible utility in low cost optoelectronic devices and photodetectors operating in the long wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum.     

Air-Stable Violet Phosphorus/MoS2 van der Waals Heterostructure for High-Responsivity and Gate-Tunable Photodetection

Violet phosphorus (VP), a newly emerging elemental 2D semiconductor, with attractive properties such as tunable bandgap, high carrier mobility, and unusual structural anisotropy, offers significant opportunities for designing high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices. However, the study on fundamental property and device application of 2D VP is seriously hindered by its inherent instability in ambient air. Here, a VP/MoS₂ van der Waals heterostructure is constructed by vertically staking few-layer VP and MoS₂, aiming to utilize the synergistic effect of the two materials to achieve a high-performance 2D photodetector. The strong optical absorption of VP combining with the type-II band alignment of VP/MoS₂ heterostructure make VP play a prominent photogating effect. As a result, the VP/MoS₂ heterostructure photodetector achieves an excellent photoresponse performances with ultrahigh responsivity of 3.82 × 10⁵ A W^–1, high specific detectivity of 9.17 × 10¹³ Jones, large external quantum efficiency of 8.91 × 10⁷ %, and gate tunability, which are much superior to that of individual MoS₂ device or VP device. Moreover, the VP/MoS₂ heterostructure photodetector indicates superior air stability due to the effective protection of VP by MoS₂ encapsulation. This work sheds light on the future study of the fundamental property and optoelectronic device application of VP.     

Phase-Modulated Multidimensional Perovskites for High-Sensitivity Self-Powered UV Photodetectors

2D Ruddlesden-Popper perovskites (PVKs) have recently shown overwhelming potential in various optoelectronic devices on account of enhanced stability to their 3D counterparts. So far, regulating the phase distribution and orientation of 2D perovskite thin films remains challenging to achieve efficient charge transport. This work elucidates the balance struck between sufficient gradient sedimentation of perovskite colloids and less formation of small-n phases, which results in the layered alignment of phase compositions and thus in enhanced photoresponse. The solvent engineering strategy, together with the introduction of poly(3,4-ethylene-dioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) and PC₇₁BM layer jointly contribute to outstanding self-powered performance of indium tin oxide/PEDOT:PSS/PVK/PC₇₁BM/Ag device, with a photocurrent of 18.4 µA and an on/off ratio up to 2800. The as-fabricated photodetector exhibits high sensitivity characteristics with the peak responsivity of 0.22 A W⁻¹ and the detectivity up to 1.3 × 10¹² Jones detected at UV-A region, outperforming most reported perovskite-based UV photodetectors and maintaining high stability over a wide spectrum ranging from UV to visible region. This discovery supplies deep insights into the control of ordered phases and crystallinity in quasi-2D perovskite films for high-performance optoelectronic devices.     

Flexible Transparent and Free‐Standing SiC Nanowires Fabric: Stretchable UV Absorber and Fast‐Response UV‐A Detector

Transparent and flexible materials are desired for the construction of photoelectric multifunctional integrated devices and portable electronics. Herein, 2H‐SiC nanowires are assembled into a flexible, transparent, self‐standing nanowire fabric (FTS‐NWsF). The as‐synthesized ultralong nanowires form high‐quality crystals with a few stacking faults. The optical transmission spectra reveal that FTS‐NWsF absorbs most incident 200–400 nm light, but remains transparent to visible light. A polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)–SiC fabric–PDMS sandwich film device exhibits stable electrical output even when repeatedly stretched by up to 50%. Unlike previous SiC nanowires in which stacking faults are prevalent, the transparent, stretchable SiC fabric shows considerable photoelectric activity and exhibits a rapid photoresponse (rise and decay time < 30 ms) to 340–400 nm light, covering most of the UV‐A spectral region. These advances represent significant progress in the design of functional optoelectronic SiC nanowires and transparent and stretchable optoelectronic systems.     

Ultrathin CsPbX3 Nanowire Arrays with Strong Emission Anisotropy

1D nanowires of all‐inorganic lead halide perovskites represent a good architecture for the development of polarization‐sensitive optoelectronic devices due to their high absorption efficient, emission yield, and dielectric constants. However, among as‐fabricated perovskite nanowires with the lateral dimensions of hundreds nanometers so far, the optical anisotropy is hindered and rarely explored owing to the invalidating of electrostatic dielectric mismatch in the physical dimensions. Here, well‐aligned CsPbBr₃ and CsPbCl₃ nanowires with thickness T down to 15 and 7 nm, respectively, are synthesized using a vapor phase van der Waals epitaxial method. Strong emission anisotropy with polarization ratio up to ≈0.78 is demonstrated in the nanowires with T < 40 nm due to the electrostatic dielectric confinement. With the increasing of thickness, the polarization ratio remarkably reduces monotonously to ≈0.17 until T ≈140 nm; and further oscillates in a small amplitude owing to the wave characteristic of light. These findings not only represent a demonstration of perovskite‐based polarization‐sensitive light sources, but also advance fundamental understanding of their polarization properties of perovskite nanowires.     

Chemical Vapor Deposition Growth of High Crystallinity Sb2Se3 Nanowire with Strong Anisotropy for Near‐Infrared Photodetectors

Low‐dimensional semiconductors have attracted considerable attention due to their unique structures and remarkable properties, which makes them promising materials for a wide range of applications related to electronics and optoelectronics. Herein, the preparation of 1D Sb₂Se₃ nanowires (NWs) with high crystal quality via chemical vapor deposition growth is reported. The obtained Sb₂Se₃ NWs have triangular prism morphology with aspect ratio range from 2 to 200, and three primary lattice orientations can be achieved on the sixfold symmetry mica substrate. Angle‐resolved polarized Raman spectroscopy measurement reveals strong anisotropic properties of the Sb₂Se₃ NWs, which is also developed to identify its crystal orientation. Furthermore, photodetectors based on Sb₂Se₃ NW exhibit a wide spectral photoresponse range from visible to NIR (400–900 nm). Owing to the high crystallinity of Sb₂Se₃ NW, the photodetector acquires a photocurrent on/off ratio of about 405, a responsivity of 5100 mA W^?1, and fast rise and fall times of about 32 and 5 ms, respectively. Additionally, owing to the anisotropic structure of Sb₂Se₃ NW, the device exhibits polarization‐dependent photoresponse. The high crystallinity and superior anisotropy of Sb₂Se₃ NW, combined with controllable preparation endows it with great potential for constructing multifunctional optoelectronic devices.     

Nested Inverse Opal Perovskite toward Superior Flexible and Self-Powered Photodetection Performance

Flexible and self-powered perovskite photodetectors have attracted tremendous research interests due to their applications in wearable and portable devices. However, the conventional planar structured photodetectors are always accompanied with limited device performance and undesired mechanical stability. Herein, a nested inverse opal (NIO) structured perovskite photodetector via a facile template-assisted spin-coating method is reported. The coupling effect of enhanced light capture, increased carrier transport, and improved perovskite film quality enables NIO device to exhibit superior photoresponse performance. The NIO photodetector exhibits a high responsivity of 473 mA W⁻¹ and detectivity up to 1.35 × 10¹³ Jones at 720 nm without external bias. The NIO structure can efficiently release mechanical stress during the bending process and the photocurrent has no degradation even after 500 cycles of bending. Moreover, the unencapsulated NIO device can operate for over 16 d under ambient conditions, presenting a significantly enhanced environmental stability compared to the planar device. This work demonstrates that deliberate structural design is an effective avenue for constructing self-powered, flexible, and stable optoelectronic devices.     

ZnO nanosquids: branching nanowires from nanotubes and nanorods

One-dimensional (1D) semiconductor nanostructures are promising building blocks for future nanoelectronic and nanophotonic devices. ZnO has proven to be a multifunctional and multistructural nanomaterial with promising properties. Here we report the growth of ZnO nanosquids which can be directly grown on planar oxidized Si substrates without using catalysts and templates. The formation of these nanosquids can be explained by the theory of nucleation, and the vapor-solid crystal growth mechanism. The branching nanowires of these ZnO nanosquids could have potential application in multiplexing future nanoelectronic devices. The sharp band-edge emission at approximately 380 nm indicates that these ZnO nanosquids are also applicable for interesting optoelectronic devices.     

A Highly Sensitive Single Crystal Perovskite–Graphene Hybrid Vertical Photodetector

Organolead trihalide perovskites have attracted significant attention for optoelectronic applications due to their excellent physical properties in the past decade. Generally, both grain boundaries in perovskite films and the device structure play key roles in determining the device performance, especially for horizontal‐structured device. Here, the first optimized vertical‐structured photodetector with the perovskite single crystal MAPbBr₃ as the light absorber and graphene as the transport layer is shown. The hybrid device combines strong photoabsorption characteristics of perovskite and high carrier mobility of flexible graphene, exhibits excellent photoresponse performance with high photoresponsivity (≈1017.1 A W^?1) and high photodetectivity (≈2.02 × 10¹³ Jones) in a low light intensity (0.66 mW cm^?2) under the actuations of 3 V bias and laser irradiation at 532 nm. In particular, an ultrahigh photoconductive gain of ≈2.37 × 10³ is attained because of fast charge transfer in the graphene and large recombination lifetime in the perovskite single crystal. The vertical architecture combining perovskite crystal with highly conductive graphene offers opportunities to fulfill the synergistic effect of perovskite and 2D materials, is thus promising for developing high‐performance electronic and optoelectronic devices.     

Organic-Salt-Assisted Crystal Growth and Orientation of Quasi-2D Ruddlesden–Popper Perovskites for Solar Cells with Efficiency over 19%

Quasi-2D Ruddlesden–Popper (RP) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have drawn significant attention due to their appealing environmental stability compared to their 3D counterparts. However, the relatively low power conversion efficiency (PCE) greatly limits their applications. Here, high photovoltaic performance is demonstrated for quasi-2D RP PSCs using 2-thiophenemethylammonium as spacer with nominal n-value of 5, which is based on the stoichiometry of the precursors. The incorporation of formamidinium (FA) in quasi-2D RP perovskites reduces the bandgap and improves the light absorption ability, resulting in enlarged photocurrent and an increased PCE of 16.18%, which is higher than that of reported analogous methylammonium (MA)-based quasi-2D PSC (≈15%). A record high PCE of 19.06% is further demonstrated by using an organic salt, namely, 4-(trifluoromethyl)benzylammonium iodide, assisted crystal growth (OACG) technique, which can induce the crystal growth and orientation, tune the surface energy levels, and suppress the charge recombination losses. More importantly, the devices based on OACG-processed quasi-2D RP perovskites show remarkable environmental stability and thermal stability, for example, the PCE retaining ≈96% of its initial value after storage at 80 °C for 576 h, while only ≈37% of the original efficiency left for FAPbI₃-based 3D PSCs.     

Semiconducting Nanowire‐Based Optoelectronic Fibers

The recent ability to integrate semiconductor‐based optoelectronic functionalities within thin fibers is opening intriguing opportunities for flexible electronics and advanced textiles. The scalable integration of high‐quality semiconducting devices within functional fibers however remains a challenge. It is difficult with current strategies to combine high light absorption, good microstructure and efficient electrical contact. The growth of semiconducting nanowires is a great tool to control crystal orientation and ensure a combination of light absorption and charge extraction for efficient photodetection. Thus far, however, leveraging the attributes of nanowires has remained seemingly incompatible with fiber materials, geometry, and processing approaches. Here, the integration of semiconducting nanowire‐based devices at the tip and along the length of polymer fibers is demonstrated for the first time. The scalable thermal drawing process is combined with a simple sonochemical treatment to grow nanowires out of electrically addressed amorphous selenium domains. First principles density‐functional theory calculations show that this approach enables to tailor the surface energy of crystal facets and favors nanowire growth along a preferred orientation, resulting in fiber‐integrated devices of unprecedented performance. This novel platform is exploited to demonstrate an all‐fiber‐integrated fluorescence imaging system, highlighting novel opportunities in sensing, advanced optical probes, and smart textiles.     

Fabrication of GaN nanowires and nanorods catalyzed with tantalum

Single-crystalline GaN nanowires and nanorods have been fabricated through ammoniating Ga₂O₃ films catalyzed with tantalum (Ta) by RF magnetron sputtering, and microstructure, morphology and optical properties were investigated in particular. The results indicate that the nanowires have a hexagonal wurtzite structure with size about 50 nm in diameter and more than ten microns in length, however, the nanorods are rod-like structures with smooth surface and 100–300 nm in diameter. The growth direction of these nanostructures are perpendicular to the (100) crystal plane. The photoluminescence spectrum at room temperature exhibits a strong UV light emission band centered at 364 nm.     

Optical studies of electrochemically synthesized CdS nanowires

In this paper, electrochemical fabrication and characterization of CdS nanowires having diameter 100 and 200 nm is reported. Nano-channels in anodic alumina membrane were utilized as template. Morphological study of nanowires was made using Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). UV–visible absorption and laser induced time resolved photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy were used for optical characterization. UV–visible absorption depicts that, there is slight increase in band gap of nanowires with decrease in diameter of nanowires. PL measurements indicate emission band peak of 435 and 420 nm in case of 200 and 100 nm wires respectively. These studies are very important regarding the synthesis and optoelectronic applications of CdS nanowires.     

Ultrathin Single‐Crystalline CdTe Nanosheets Realized via Van der Waals Epitaxy

Due to the novel physical properties, high flexibility, and strong compatibility with Si‐based electronic techniques, 2D nonlayered structures have become one of the hottest topics. However, the realization of 2D structures from nonlayered crystals is still a critical challenge, which requires breaking the bulk crystal symmetry and guaranteeing the highly anisotropic crystal growth. CdTe owns a typical wurtzite crystal structure, which hinders the 2D anisotropic growth of hexagonal‐symmetry CdTe. Here, for the first time, the 2D anisotropic growth of ultrathin nonlayered CdTe as thin as 4.8 nm via an effective van der Waals epitaxy method is demonstrated. The anisotropic ratio exceeds 10³. Highly crystalline nanosheets with uniform thickness and large lateral dimensions are obtained. The in situ fabricated ultrathin 2D CdTe photodetector shows ultralow dark current (≈100 fA), as well as high detectivity, stable photoswitching, and fast photoresponse speed (τ_rising = 18.4 ms, τ_decay = 14.7 ms). Besides, benefitting from its 2D planar geometry, CdTe nanosheet exhibits high compatibility with flexible substrates and traditional microfabrication techniques, indicating its significant potential in the applications of flexible electronic and optoelectronic devices.     

High-performance and broadband photodetection of bicrystalline(GaN)1-x(ZnO)x solid solution nanowires via crystal defect engineering

Crystal defect engineering is widely used as an effective approach to regulate the optical and opto-electronic properties of semiconductor nanostructures.However,photogenerated electron-hole pair recombination centers caused by structural defects usually lead to the reduction of optoelectronic perfor-mance.In this work,a high-performance photodetector based on(GaN)1-x(ZnO)x solid solution nanowire with bicrystal structure is fabricated and it shows excellent photoresponse to ultraviolet and visible light.The highest responsivity of the photodetector is as high as 60,86 and 43 A/W under the irradiation of 365 nm,532 nm and 650 nm,respectively.The corresponding response time is as fast as 170,320 and 160 ms.Such wide spectral responses can be attributed to various intermediate energy levels induced by the introduction of various structural defects and dopants in the solid solution nanowire.Moreover,the peculiar bicrystal boundary along the axial direction of the nanowire provides two parallel and fast trans-mission channels for photo-generated carriers,reducing the recombination of photo-generated carriers.Our findings provide a valued example using crystal defect engineering to broaden the photoresponse range and improve the photodetector performance and thus can be extended to other material systems for various optoelectronic applications.     

Preparation and photoluminescence of high density SiOx nanowires with Fe3O4 nanoparticles catalyst

Large scale, high density SiOx nanowires have been synthesized using a novel Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles catalyst. The lengths of SiOx nanowires are in the range of several tens to hundreds of micrometers, and the diameters of nanowires are 20–80 nm. Transmission electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy show that the SiOx nanowires are amorphous, and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry analysis reveals that SiOx nanowires consist of Si and O elements in an atomic ratio of approximately x = 1.4–1.7. The vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) mechanism is the main formation mechanism of SiOx nanowires. The SiOx nanowires have two broad photoluminescence peaks at about 405 nm and 465 nm when the 250 nm ultraviolet fluorescent light excitation is applied at room temperature. The SiOx nanowires with good photoluminescence properties are promising candidates for ultraviolet–blue optical emitting devices.     

One-Dimensional （1D） ZnS Nanomaterials and Nanostructures

One-dimensional （1D） nanomaterials and nanostructures have received much attention due to their potential interest for understanding fundamental physical concepts and for applications in constructing nanoscale electric and optoelectronic devices. Zinc sulfide （ZnS） is an important semiconductor compound of Ⅱ-Ⅵ group, and the synthesis of 1D ZnS nanomaterials and nanostructures has been of growing interest owing to their promising application in nanoscale optoelectronic devices. This paper reviews the recent progress on 1D ZnS nanomaterials and nanostructures, including nanowires, nanowire arrays, nanorods, nanobelts or nanoribbons, nanocables, and hierarchical nanostructures etc. This article begins with a survey of various methods that have been developed for generating 1D nanomaterials and nanostructures, and then mainly focuses on structures, synthesis, characterization, formation mechanisms and optical property tuning, and luminescence mechanisms of 1D ZnS nanomaterials and nanostructures. Finally, this review concludes with personal views towards future research on 1D ZnS nanomaterials and nanostructures.     

Highly Efficient and Ultrasensitive Large‐Area Flexible Photodetector Based on Perovskite Nanowires

Hybrid organic–inorganic perovskites have shown exceptional semiconducting properties and microstructural versatility for inexpensive, solution‐processable photovoltaic and optoelectronic devices. In this work, an all‐solution‐based technique in ambient environment for highly sensitive and high‐speed flexible photodetectors using high crystal quality perovskite nanowires grown on Kapton substrate is presented. At 10 V, the optimized photodetector exhibits a responsivity as high as 0.62 A W^?1, a maximum specific detectivity of 7.3 × 10¹² cm Hz^1/2 W^?1, and a rise time of 227.2 µs. It also shows remarkable photocurrent stability even beyond 5000 bending cycles. Moreover, a deposition of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as a protective layer on the perovskite yields significantly better stability under ambient air operation: the PMMA‐protected devices are stable for over 30 days. This work demonstrates a cost‐effective fabrication technique for high‐performance flexible photodetectors and opens opportunities for research advancements in broadband and large‐scale flexible perovskite‐based optoelectronic devices.     

Synthesis,Characterizations and Applications of Cadmium Chalcogenide Nanowires:A Review

Cadmium chalcogenide nanowires have demonstrated superior electrical and optical properties,and have emerged as prominent building blocks for nanoscale electronic and optoelectronic devices.In addition to the effort devoted to advance techniques of fabricating high quality nanowires,much has been endeavored to elucidate their unique physical properties for better design and development of functional devices with low power consumption and high performance.Herein,this article provides a comprehensive review of the forefront research on cadmium chalcogenide nanowires,ranging from material synthesis,property characterizations,and device applications.     

Edge‐Epitaxial Growth of InSe Nanowires toward High‐Performance Photodetectors

Semiconducting nanowires offer many opportunities for electronic and optoelectronic device applications due to their unique geometries and physical properties. However, it is challenging to synthesize semiconducting nanowires directly on a SiO₂/Si substrate due to lattice mismatch. Here, a catalysis‐free approach is developed to achieve direct synthesis of long and straight InSe nanowires on SiO₂/Si substrates through edge‐homoepitaxial growth. Parallel InSe nanowires are achieved further on SiO₂/Si substrates through controlling growth conditions. The underlying growth mechanism is attributed to a selenium self‐driven vapor–liquid–solid process, which is distinct from the conventional metal‐catalytic vapor–liquid–solid method widely used for growing Si and III–V nanowires. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the as‐grown InSe nanowire‐based visible light photodetector simultaneously possesses an extraordinary photoresponsivity of 271 A W^?1, ultrahigh detectivity of 1.57 × 10¹⁴ Jones, and a fast response speed of microsecond scale. The excellent performance of the photodetector indicates that as‐grown InSe nanowires are promising in future optoelectronic applications. More importantly, the proposed edge‐homoepitaxial approach may open up a novel avenue for direct synthesis of semiconducting nanowire arrays on SiO₂/Si substrates.