Evolution of dielectric function of Al-doped ZnO thin films with thermal annealing: effect of band gap expansion and free-electron absorption

Unconventional plasmonic sensitization of graphene in mid-infrared

Light-matter interaction in graphene can be engineered and substantially enhanced through plasmonic sensitization, which has led to numerous applications in photodetection, sensing, photocatalysis and spectroscopy. The majority of these designs have relied on conventional plasmonic materials such as gold, silver and aluminum. This limits the implementation of such devices to the ultraviolet and visible regimes of the electromagnetic spectrum. However, for many practical applications, including those relevant to security and defense, the development of new strategies and materials for sensing and detection of infra red (IR) light is crucial. Here we use surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), for direct visualization and estimation of enhanced light-matter interaction in graphene in the mid-IR regime, through sensitization by an unconventional plasmonic material. Specifically, we fabricate a hybrid device consisting of a single layer graphene and a two-dimensional array of nanodiscs of aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO), which is a highly doped semiconductor, exhibiting plasmonic resonance in the mid-IR. We find that the enhancement in the SERS signal of graphene is of similar magnitude to what has been achieved previously in the visible using conventional plasmonic materials. Our results establish the potential of such hybrid systems for graphene-based optical and optoelectronic applications in the mid-IR.

Enhanced Sol-Gel Route to Obtain a Highly Transparent and Conductive Aluminum-Doped Zinc Oxide Thin Film

The electrical and optical properties of sol–gel derived aluminum-doped zinc oxide thin films containing 2 at.% Al were investigated considering the modifying effects of (1) increasing the sol H₂O content and (2) a thermal treatment procedure with a high-temperature approach followed by an additional heat-treatment step under a reducing atmosphere. According to the results obtained via the TG-DTA analysis, FT-IR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction technique, and four-point probe resistivity measurements, it is argued that in the modified sample, the sol hydrolysis, decomposition of the deposited gel, and crystallization of grains result in grains of larger crystallite size in the range of 20 to 30 nm and a stronger c-axis preferred orientation with slightly less microstrain. The obtained morphology and grain-boundary characteristics result in improved conductivity considering the resistivity value below 6 mΩ·cm. A detailed investigation of the samples’ optical properties, in terms of analyzing their absorption and dispersion behaviors through UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy, support our reasoning for the increase of the mobility, and to a lesser extent the concentration of charge carriers, while causing only a slight degradation of optical transmittance down to nearly 80%. Hence, an enhanced performance as a transparent conducting film is claimed for the modified sample by comparing the figure-of-merit values.

Enhanced X-ray Sensitivity of MAPbBr3 Detector by Tailoring the Interface-States Density

An important factor for the high performance of light-harvesting devices is the presence of surface trappings. Therefore, understanding and controlling the carrier recombination of the organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite surface is critical for the device design and optimization. Here, we report the use of aluminum zinc oxide (AZO) as the anode to construct a p-n junction structure MAPbBr₃ nuclear radiation detector. The AZO/MAPbBr₃/Au detector can tolerate an electrical field of 500 V·cm^-1 and exhibit a very low leakage current of ∼9 nA, which is 1 order of magnitude lower than that of the standard ohmic contact device. The interface state density of AZO/MAPbBr₃ contact was reduced from 2.17 × 10¹⁰ to 8.7 × 10⁸ cm^-2 by annealing at 100 °C under an Ar atmosphere. Consequently, a photocurrent to dark current ratio of 190 was realized when exposed to a green light-emitting diode with a wavelength of 520 nm (∼200 mW·cm^-2). Simultaneously, a high X-ray sensitivity of ∼529 μC·Gy_air^-1 cm^-2 was achieved under 80 kVp X-ray at an electric field of 50 V·cm^-1. These results demonstrate the use of surface engineering to further optimize the performance of MAPbBr₃ detectors, which have many potential applications in medical and security detection with low radiation dose brought to the human body.

Optical Properties of Al-Doped ZnO Films in the Infrared Region and Their Absorption Applications

The optical properties of aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films were calculated rapidly and accurately by point-by-point analysis from spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) data. It was demonstrated that there were two different physical mechanisms, i.e., the interfacial effect and crystallinity, for the thickness-dependent permittivity in the visible and infrared regions. In addition, there was a blue shift for the effective plasma frequency of AZO when the thickness increased, and the effective plasma frequency did not exist for AZO ultrathin films (< 25 nm) in the infrared region, which demonstrated that AZO ultrathin films could not be used as a negative index metamaterial. Based on detailed permittivity research, we designed a near-perfect absorber at 2-5 μm by etching AZO-ZnO alternative layers. The alternative layers matched the phase of reflected light, and the void cylinder arrays extended the high absorption range. Moreover, the AZO absorber demonstrated feasibility and applicability on different substrates.

Highly spectrum-selective ultraviolet photodetector based on p-NiO/n-IGZO thin film heterojunction structure

Ultraviolet photodetector with p-n heterojunction is fabricated by magnetron sputtering deposition of n-type indium gallium zinc oxide (n-IGZO) and p-type nickel oxide (p-NiO) thin films on ITO glass. The performance of the photodetector is largely affected by the conductivity of the p-NiO thin film, which can be controlled by varying the oxygen partial pressure during the deposition of the p-NiO thin film. A highly spectrum-selective ultraviolet photodetector has been achieved with the p-NiO layer with a high conductivity. The results can be explained in terms of the "optically-filtering" function of the NiO layer.