Over the last decade, cadmium telluride (CdTe) and cadmium zinc telluride (CdZnTe) wide band gap semiconductors have attracted increasing interest as X-ray and gamma ray detectors. Among the traditional high performance spectrometers based on silicon (Si) and germanium (Ge), CdTe and CdZnTe detectors show high detection efficiency and good room temperature performance and are well suited for the development of compact and reliable detection systems. In this paper, we review the current status of research in the development of CdTe and CdZnTe detectors by a comprehensive survey on the material properties, the device characteristics, the different techniques for improving the overall detector performance and some major applications. Astrophysical and medical applications are discussed, pointing out the ongoing Italian research activities on the development of these detectors.

Although generally ascribed to the presence of defects, an ultimate assignment of the different contributions to the emission spectrum in terms of surface states and deep levels in ZnO nanostructures is still lacking. In this work we unambiguously give first evidence that zinc vacancies at the (1010) nonpolar surfaces are responsible for the green luminescence of ZnO nanostructures. The result is obtained by performing an exhaustive comparison between spatially resolved cathodoluminescence spectroscopy and imaging and ab initio simulations. Our findings are crucial to control undesired recombinations in nanostructured devices.

The influence of thermal treatments on the properties of mixed bromide-iodide organolead perovskites (MAPbI3−xBrx, MA=CH3NH3) is investigated in films prepared in air by single-step solution processes based on different precursor solutions. Initially, the bandgap energy (EG) dependence on composition is reconsidered on films obtained by mixtures of tri-halide solutions.An EG(x) relation is obtained that is expected to be independent of the film properties and can be used to assess perovskite composition. In these samples recombination centres are observed whose energy depth increases with x, likely involving the simultaneous presence of iodide and bromide, while the Urbach energy increases with the grain surface-to-volume ratio, which points out that the defects giving sub-bandgap absorption originate from grain boundaries. Tri-halide mixtures allow perovskite synthetic processes suitable for solar cell production, being fast and reproducible. A slight MABr excess in the solution made of MABr and PbI2 gives MAPbI2Br films free of PbI2 phases and with a high compositional stability, but non-radiative recombination channels can make the material not appropriate for high efficiency solar cells.Finally, the solution made of MAI and PbBr2 (3:1 molar ratio) is the less promising for solar cell production because its non-stoichiometric nature synthesis reproducibility an issue.

Selective detection of bioanalytes in physiological fluids, such as blood, sweat or saliva, by means of lowcost and non-invasive devices, is of crucial importance to improve diagnosis and prevention in healthcare.To be really useful in everyday life a sensing system needs to be handy, non-invasive, easy to read and possibly wearable. Only a sensor that satisfies these requirements could be eligible for applications in healthcare and physiological condition monitoring. Herein an organic electrochemical transistor has been investigated as a simple, low-cost and e-textile biosensor, fully integrated on a single cotton yarn.The biosensor has been used for real-time detection of adrenaline, selectively compared to the saline content in human physiological fluids. The sensing mechanism is based on the oxidation of adrenaline at the Pt-gate electrode surface, with the formation of adrenaline-quinone and adrenochrome. Two independent organic electrochemical transistors, characterized by different gate-electrode materials, detect saline and adrenaline concentrations, respectively, in real human sweat. Measurements performed in real-time mode show the complete independence of adrenaline detection from NaCl and, hence, guarantee the simultaneous monitoring of both concentrations. The oxidation of adrenaline has been studied by means of absorption spectroscopy in air, with either silver or platinum working electrodes.Our results confirm that the oxidation reaction driven by the Pt-electrode leads to the formation of adrenochrome, while with the Ag-electrode the oxidation is similar to the spontaneous one occurring in air. The cotton-based biosensor shows the possibility of monitoring human performances (hydration and stress) in situ and using a non-invasive approach, opening new unexplored opportunities in healthcare, fitness and work safety.