Friday 11 November 2016

World’s Thinnest Photo Detector Developed

The world’s thinnest photodetector has been developed. This is a device that converts light into an electric current. This 2D technology uses molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) sandwiched in graphene. The Center for Integrated Nanostructure Physics, within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) has developed the world’s thinnest photodetector, that is a device that converts light into an electric current. With a thickness of just 1.3
nanometers — 10 times smaller than the current standard silicon diodes — this device could be used in the Internet of Things, smart devices, wearable electronics and photoelectronics.

This 2D technology, published on Nature Communications, uses molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) sandwiched in graphene.

Graphene is a fantastic material: It’s conductive, thin (just one-atom thick), transparent and flexible. However, since it does not behave as a semiconductor, its application in the electronics industry is limited. Therefore, in order to increase graphene’s usability, IBS scientists sandwiched a layer of the 2D semiconductor MoS2 between two graphene sheets and put it over a silicon base.

A device with one-layer of MoS2 is too thin to generate a conventional p-n junction, where positive (p) charges and negative (n) charges are separated and can create an internal electric field.

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