Polarization controlled photovoltaic and self-powered photodetector characteristics in Pb-free ferroelectric thin film
TL;DR: In this article, a switchable and large PV effect is demonstrated in a Pb-free ferroelectric 0.5Ba(Zr0.7Ca0.2Ti0.3)TiO3 (BZT-BCT) thin film fabricated by a pulsed laser deposition technique.
Abstract: Ferroelectrics are considered next generation photovoltaic (PV) materials. In this work, a switchable and large PV effect is demonstrated in a Pb-free ferroelectric 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 (BZT-BCT) thin film fabricated by a pulsed laser deposition technique. The material shows a remarkable PV output of 0.81 V due to its morphotropic phase boundary composition. The observed PV effect is analyzed on the basis of the interfacial Schottky barrier and bulk depolarization field. The poling dependent PV studies revealed that although the Schottky and depolarization field contribute to the PV effect, the latter dominates the PV response beyond the coercive field. Additionally, the importance of this compound in the field of a self-biased photodetector is elucidated in terms of calculated photodetector parameters such as responsivity and detectivity. The explored results will bring significant advancement in the field of ferroelectric PV, UV solid state detector applications and also give an additional dimension to the multifunctional ability of the BZT-BCT system.
Citations
More filters
TL;DR: The application of ferroelectric materials (i.e. solids that exhibit spontaneous electric polarisation) in solar cells has a long and controversial history as mentioned in this paper, and the recent successful application of inorganic and hybrid perovskite structured materials (e.g. BiFeO3, CsSnI3, CH3NH3PbI3) emphasises that polar semiconductors can be used in conventional photovoltaic architectures.
Abstract: The application of ferroelectric materials (i.e. solids that exhibit spontaneous electric polarisation) in solar cells has a long and controversial history. This includes the first observations of the anomalous photovoltaic effect (APE) and the bulk photovoltaic effect (BPE). The recent successful application of inorganic and hybrid perovskite structured materials (e.g. BiFeO3, CsSnI3, CH3NH3PbI3) in solar cells emphasises that polar semiconductors can be used in conventional photovoltaic architectures. We review developments in this field, with a particular emphasis on the materials known to display the APE/BPE (e.g. ZnS, CdTe, SbSI), and the theoretical explanation. Critical analysis is complemented with first-principles calculation of the underlying electronic structure. In addition to discussing the implications of a ferroelectric absorber layer, and the solid state theory of polarisation (Berry phase analysis), design principles and opportunities for high-efficiency ferroelectric photovoltaics are presented.
248 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this paper, an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance "visible-blind" microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the surface areas exposed to light, is reported.
Abstract: Although there has been significant progress in the fabrication and performance optimization of one-dimensional nanostructure-based photodetectors, it is still a challenge to develop an effective and low-cost device with high performance characteristics, such as a high photocurrent/ dark-current ratio, photocurrent stability, and fast time response. Herein an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance 'visible-blind' microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the nanobelt surface areas exposed to light, is reported. The devices exhibit about 750 times enhancement of a photocurrent compared with individual nanobelt-based sensors and an ultrafast time response. The photocurrent stability and time response to UV-light do not change significantly when a channel distance is altered from 2 to 100 μm or the sensor environment changes from air to vacuum and different measurement temperatures (60 and 150°C). The photoelectrical behaviors can be recovered well after returning the measurement conditions to air and room temperature again. The low cost and high performance of the resultant ZnS nanobelt photodetectors guarantee their highest potential for visible-blind UV-light sensors working in the UV-A band.
204 citations
73 citations
TL;DR: The fabrication of self-powered, carbon dot (CD) enhanced, flexible ZnO/graphite heterojunction based UV detector, where cellulose paper has been used as the substrate with Schottky characteristics is reported.
Abstract: The fabrication of flexible as well as self-powered optoelectronic devices is a growing and challenging area of research Some scientists have reported the fabrication of either flexible or self-powered photodetectors recently However, most of the literature studies fail to report the fabrication of self-powered as well as flexible photodetectors This study reports the fabrication of self-powered, carbon dot (CD)-enhanced, flexible ZnO/graphite heterojunction-based UV detector where cellulose paper has been used as the substrate A detailed study on the crystallinity and the defects of the ZnO nanorods has been done with appropriate characterizations The CD-enhanced ZnO/graphite heterojunction showed Schottky characteristics The Schottky parameters such as the barrier height, ideality factor, and the series resistance have also been calculated using the Cheung-Cheung method The observed values of barrier height, ideality factor, and the series resistance are 074 eV, 374, and 503 kΩ, respectively The transient response at self-powered condition has been demonstrated The response time and the recovery time at self-powered condition have also been calculated with the help of the transient response, and those values are ∼2 and ∼32 s, respectively The responsivity and the specific detectivity of the fabricated UV detector have been calculated as 957 mA/W and 427×108 Jones, respectively, at 330 nm wavelength, which is quite comparable with literature-reported values, considering a self-powered photodetector
36 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a polycrystalline BiFeO3 (BFO) thin film on a transparent substrate also has the ferroelectric switchable diode and photovoltaic effects.
28 citations
References
More filters
TL;DR: In this article, an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance "visible-blind" microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the surface areas exposed to light, is reported.
Abstract: Although there has been significant progress in the fabrication and performance optimization of one-dimensional nanostructure-based photodetectors, it is still a challenge to develop an effective and low-cost device with high performance characteristics, such as a high photocurrent/ dark-current ratio, photocurrent stability, and fast time response. Herein an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance 'visible-blind' microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the nanobelt surface areas exposed to light, is reported. The devices exhibit about 750 times enhancement of a photocurrent compared with individual nanobelt-based sensors and an ultrafast time response. The photocurrent stability and time response to UV-light do not change significantly when a channel distance is altered from 2 to 100 μm or the sensor environment changes from air to vacuum and different measurement temperatures (60 and 150°C). The photoelectrical behaviors can be recovered well after returning the measurement conditions to air and room temperature again. The low cost and high performance of the resultant ZnS nanobelt photodetectors guarantee their highest potential for visible-blind UV-light sensors working in the UV-A band.
215 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors showed that the voltage generated in a noncentrosymmetric crystal due to the bulk photovoltaic effect (BPE) can greatly exceed the energy gap, however, the light energy conversion efficiency is extremely low.
Abstract: The voltage generated in a noncentrosymmetric crystal due to the bulk photovoltaic effect (BPE) can greatly exceed the energy gap, however, the light energy conversion efficiency is extremely low. Here we show that the BPE is remarkably enhanced in the case of thin films. The measurements of the BPE in heteroepitaxial single domain ferroelectric ${\mathrm{BaTiO}}_{3}$ thin films reveal the enhancement of both photoinduced electric field and conversion efficiencies of the BPE by more than 4 orders of magnitude. Besides the fundamental aspect, our results indicate the potential for the use of the BPE in photovoltaic applications.
206 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this paper, an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance "visible-blind" microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the surface areas exposed to light, is reported.
Abstract: Although there has been significant progress in the fabrication and performance optimization of one-dimensional nanostructure-based photodetectors, it is still a challenge to develop an effective and low-cost device with high performance characteristics, such as a high photocurrent/ dark-current ratio, photocurrent stability, and fast time response. Herein an efficient and low-cost method to achieve high-performance 'visible-blind' microscale ZnS nanobelt-based ultraviolet (UV)-light sensors without using a lithography technique, by increasing the nanobelt surface areas exposed to light, is reported. The devices exhibit about 750 times enhancement of a photocurrent compared with individual nanobelt-based sensors and an ultrafast time response. The photocurrent stability and time response to UV-light do not change significantly when a channel distance is altered from 2 to 100 μm or the sensor environment changes from air to vacuum and different measurement temperatures (60 and 150°C). The photoelectrical behaviors can be recovered well after returning the measurement conditions to air and room temperature again. The low cost and high performance of the resultant ZnS nanobelt photodetectors guarantee their highest potential for visible-blind UV-light sensors working in the UV-A band.
204 citations
TL;DR: A ferroelectric BaTiO3 film-based photodetector is demonstrated that can be operated without using any external power source and a fast sensing of 405 nm light illumination is enabled.
Abstract: Ferroelectric materials have demonstrated novel photovoltaic effect to scavenge solar energy. However, most of the ferroelectric materials with wide bandgaps (2.7–4 eV) suffer from low power conversion efficiency of less than 0.5% due to absorbing only 8–20% of solar spectrum. Instead of harvesting solar energy, these ferroelectric materials can be well suited for photodetector applications, especially for sensing near-UV irradiations. Here, a ferroelectric BaTiO3 film-based photodetector is demonstrated that can be operated without using any external power source and a fast sensing of 405 nm light illumination is enabled. As compared with photovoltaic effect, both the responsivity and the specific detectivity of the photodetector can be dramatically enhanced by larger than 260% due to the light-induced photovoltaic–pyroelectric coupled effect. A self-powered photodetector array system can be utilized to achieve spatially resolved light intensity detection by recording the output voltage signals as a mapping figure.
186 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide a critical overview of the physical principles and mechanisms of solar energy conversion using ferroelectric semiconductors and contact layers, as well as the main achievements reported so far.
160 citations