Bismuth sulfoiodide (BiSI) nanorods: synthesis, characterization, and photodetector application

Abstract

The nanorods of bismuth sulfoiodide (BiSI) were synthesized at relatively low temperature (393 K) through a wet chemical method. The crystalline one-dimensional (1D) structure of the BiSI nanorods was confirmed using high resolution transmission microscopy (HRTEM). The morphology and chemical composition of the material were examined by applying scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), respectively. The average diameter of 126(3) nm and length of 1.9(1) µm of the BiSI nanorods were determined. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that prepared material consists of a major orthorhombic BiSI phase (87%) and a minor amount of hexagonal Bi13S18I2 phase (13%) with no presence of other residual phases. The direct energy band gap of 1.67(1) eV was determined for BiSI film using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Two types of photodetectors were constructed from BiSI nanorods. The first one was traditional photoconductive device based on BiSI film on stiff glass substrate equipped with Au electrodes. An influence of light intensity on photocurrent response to monochromatic light (λ = 488 nm) illumination was studied at a constant bias voltage. The novel flexible photo-chargeable device was the second type of prepared photodetectors. It consisted of BiSI film and gel electrolyte layer sandwiched between polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates coated with indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. The flexible self-powered BiSI photodetector exhibited open-circuit photovoltage of 68 mV and short-circuit photocurrent density of 0.11 nA/cm2 under light illumination with intensity of 0.127 W/cm2. These results confirmed high potential of BiSI nanorods for use in self-powered photodetectors and photo-chargeable capacitors.

Piezotronic Antimony Sulphoiodide/Polyvinylidene Composite for Strain-Sensing and Energy-Harvesting Applications

“…However, a group of materials that has been somewhat overlooked but holds significant promise for piezotronics applications is chalcohalides. Within the ternary chalcohalides compounds, SbSI, SbSeI, and BiSI stand out as notable materials with diverse applications, including gas sensors [ 25 ], nanogenerators [ 26 ], photodetectors [ 27 ], smart textiles [ 28 ], and strain sensors [ 29 ]. Among these ternary chalcohalides, SbSI emerges as the most promising piezoelectric material.…”

Lead-Free Semiconductors: Phase-Evolution and Superior Stability of Multinary Tin Chalcohalides

“… − However, aside from the preparation of Sn 2 SbS 2 I 3 thin-films employing a high temperature annealing approach, the solution-phase synthesis of tin-based chalcohalides remains relatively unexplored . Moreover, while the colloidal synthesis of bismuth-based, ternary chalcohalides such as BiSI and Bi 13 S 18 I 2 has undergone a renaissance in the past few years, − surprisingly little synthetic attention has been paid to tin-based, ternary chalcohalides such as Sn 2 SI 2 . − …”

Lead-Free Semiconductors: Phase-Evolution and Superior Stability of Multinary Tin Chalcohalides

“…27,28,29 However, aside from the preparation of Sn2SbS2I3 thin-films employing a high temperature annealing approach, 25 the solution-phase synthesis of tin-based chalcohalides remains relatively unexplored. 30 Moreover, while the colloidal synthesis of bismuth-based, ternary chalcohalides such as BiSI and Bi13S18I2 has undergone a renaissance in the past few years, 31,3233,34,35,36,37 surprisingly little synthetic attention has been paid to tin-based, ternary chalcohalides such as Sn2SI2. 38,39,40 Inspired by recent work on the solution-phase synthesis of lead-based chalcohalides, we hypothesized that the solution-phase synthesis of both quaternary and ternary tin chalcohalides could be attained using thiocyanate precursors.…”