Application of TiO2 thin film with nanorods to surface acoustic wave type ultraviolet photo detection

TiO₂ thin films with nanorods grown on 128° Y?cut LiNbO₃ and 90° rotated 42°45′ ST?cut quartz were used to fabricate surface acoustic wave ultraviolet photodetectors. TiO₂ thin film was deposited by radio?frequency magnetron sputtering and TiO₂ nanorods were then synthesized on the thin film via the hydrothermal method. 128° Y?cut LiNbO₃ is a Rayleigh wave substrate with a high electromechanical coupling coefficient, whereas 90° rotated 42°45′ ST?cut quartz is a surface skimming bulk wave substrate with a high wave velocity. The effects of substrate characteristics and TiO₂ nanorod morphology on the ultraviolet sensitivity of the surface acoustic wave photodetectors were investigated. The variations of insertion loss, phase, resistance, and capacitance under ultraviolet illumination were examined. The performance of the TiO₂ thin film with nanorods deposited on 128° Y?cut LiNbO₃ is much greater than that of the film deposited on 90° rotated 42°45′ ST?cut quartz, which can be attributed to the former’s high electromechanical coupling coefficient.