High-quality WS2 film with the single domain size up to 400 μm was grown on Si/SiO2 wafer by atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition. The effects of some important fabrication parameters on the controlled growth of WS2 film have been investigated in detail, including the choice of precursors, tube pressure, growing temperature, holding time, the amount of sulfur powder, and gas flow rate. By optimizing the growth conditions at one atmospheric pressure, we obtained tungsten disulfide single domains with an average size over 100 μm. Raman spectra, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy provided direct evidence that the WS2 film had an atomic layer thickness and a single-domain hexagonal structure with a high crystal quality. And the photoluminescence spectra indicated that the tungsten disulfide films showed an evident layer-number-dependent fluorescence efficiency, depending on their energy band structure. Our study provides an important experimental basis for large-area, controllable preparation of atom-thick tungsten disulfide thin film and can also expedite the development of scalable high-performance optoelectronic devices based on WS2 film.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s11671-017-2329-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The recent rapid development in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has led to significant research interest due to their notable photovoltaic performance, currently exceeding 25% power conversion efficiency for small-area PSCs. The materials used to fabricate PSCs dominate the current photovoltaic market, especially with the rapid increase in efficiency and performance. The present work reviews recent developments in PSCs’ preparation and fabrication methods, the associated advantages and disadvantages, and methods for improving the efficiency of large-area perovskite films for commercial application. The work is structured in three parts. First is a brief overview of large-area PSCs, followed by a discussion of the preparation methods and methods to improve PSC efficiency, quality, and stability. Envisioned future perspectives on the synthesis and commercialization of large-area PSCs are discussed last. Most of the growth in commercial PSC applications is likely to be in building integrated photovoltaics and electric vehicle battery charging solutions. This review concludes that blade coating, slot-die coating, and ink-jet printing carry the highest potential for the scalable manufacture of large-area PSCs with moderate-to-high PCEs. More research and development are key to improving PSC stability and, in the long-term, closing the chasm in lifespan between PSCs and conventional photovoltaic cells.

A high-sensitive and fast-response photodetector based on BiFeO 3 (BFO) ferroelectric thin film is fabricated using coplanar electrode configuration. A large photocurrent/dark current ratio is found up to two orders of magnitude at 1 V bias. Enhanced photocurrent and rectification behavior of the photodetector are observed after applying high voltage pulses to the BFO film. The short-circuit current varies systematically with the poling process and increases linearly with the light density. On the contrary, the open-circuit voltage keeps as a constant during the measurements. We attribute these behaviors to the depolarization field and the interfacial fields at the film-electrode interfaces. The BFO device presents a peak response of 0.15 mA/W at 365 nm and the response speed is on the order of tens of nanoseconds. Our work highlights the potential application of photodetector based on the ferroelectric materials. V

No abstract

Thin and lightweight flexible lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with high volumetric capacities are crucial for the development of flexible electronic devices. In the present work, we reported a paper-like ultrathin and flexible Si/carbon nanotube (CNT) composite anode for LIBs, which was realized by conformal electrodeposition of a thin layer of silicon on CNTs at ambient temperature. This method was quite simple and easy to scale up with low cost as compared to other deposition techniques, such as sputtering or CVD. The flexible Si/CNT composite exhibited high volumetric capacities in terms of the total volume of active material and current collector, surpassing the most previously reported Si-based flexible electrodes at various rates. In addition, the poor initial coulombic efficiency of the Si/CNT composites can be effectively improved by prelithiation treatment and a commercial red LED can be easily lighted by a full pouch cell using a Si/CNT composite as a flexible anode under flat or bent states. Therefore, the ultrathin and flexible Si/CNT composite is highly attractive as an anode material for flexible LIBs.