Plasmonic Indium Nanoparticle‐Induced High‐Performance Photoswitch for Blue Light Detection

Abstract

in various optoelectronic devices and systems including solar cells, [ 8,9 ] lightemitting diodes (LEDs), [ 10,11 ] nanophotonic switches, [12][13][14] nanoantennas, [ 15,16 ] water splitters, [ 17,18 ] photocatalysts, [ 19 ] optical waveguides, [ 20 ] and nanolasers. [ 21 ] Although LSPR is widely observed in noble metal nanoparticles (NMNs) due to the high density of electrons, it is not limited to NMNs and can also be achieved in some poor metal nanoparticles (PMNs) including indium, tin, copper, and even aluminium with a high density of free electrons. In comparison to noble nanoparticles, the PMNs are advantageous in the following two respects: plasmonic materials made of PMNs are much cheaper to synthesize due to their natural abundance in the Earth, which make them highly competitive building blocks for various applications, and, unlikeNMNs with their tunable LSPR normally in the visible and infrared regions (AuNPs: ≈520 nm; Au nanorods: 900 nm; AgNPs: ≈460 nm), the plasmonic properties of PMNs can be readily extended across a broader electromagnetic spectrum (AlNPs: 200-250 nm, InNPs: 300-700 nm, CuNPs: 600-900 nm). In spite of the apparent advantages of plasmonic PMNs, there is a scarcity of studies about the utilization of plasmonic PMNs for various device applications, which has been successfully achieved by plasmonic NMNs. Here in this contribution, we present a novel 1D semiconductor nanostructure-based photo detector, which may fi nd potential application in military surveillance, target detection, and light vision. [ 22,23 ] The device was composed of a highly aligned hexagonal plasmonic InNP-modifi ed ZnSe nanoribbon (ZnSeNR)/single layer graphene (SLG) Schottky junction. Indium nanoparticles were chosen not only because they display an obvious LSPR effect like other noble metal nanoparticles (Au, Ag, and Pt), but also the LSPR band of In nanoparticles is nearly identical to the bandgap of ZnSeNR. Theoretical simulations and device analysis reveal that the InNP array can induce LSPRs which are capable of trapping incident light effi ciently and enhancing the electric fi eld near the semiconductor nanostructures, leading to enhanced photo currents and an increase of key device parameters including responsivity and detectivity. This result suggests that plasmonic PMNs are highly competitive alternatives to boost the device performance of optoelectronic systems.Plasmonic nanostructures composed of poor metals (e.g., In, Cu, Al) have lately received increasing interest due to their low cost and natural abundance relative to noble metal nanoparticles (e.g., Au, Ag, Pt). To date, while considerable progress has been achieved with regard to the utilization of plasmonic noble metal nanostructures for optimizing various optoelectronic devices, little work has been performed to study the device appplication of poor metals. In this study, a high-performance blue light nano-photodetector is induced through the use of a highly ordered indium nanoparticle (InNP) array. Electrical analysis reveals that, after de...

Broadband photodetector based on carbon nanotube thin film/single layer graphene Schottky junction

“…2b)30, and the gold can form good Ohmic contact with CNTF26, the above rectifying characteristic can be exclusively attributed to the SLG-CNTF interface. In order to quantitatively evaluate the SLG-CNTF Schottky junction, the barrier height was then deduced by using the thermionic-emission based diode equation31:…”

Thermal and Optical Properties of In and In2O3 Nanoparticles Synthesized Using Pulsed Plasma in Water

“…Their CuInS 2 solar cells had efficiencies of 2.08%, and they suggested that efficiencies could be further improved by decreasing the series resistance. The main reasons for the interest in In NPs are their small size, low cost, and ease of synthesis . Indium oxide, In 2 O 3 , is an n‐type semiconductor with an indirect band gap of approximately 2.9 eV, which has wide applications such as window heaters, solar cells, flat‐panel display materials, nanoscale transistors, and gas sensors .…”

Engineering a Large Scale Indium Nanodot Array for Refractive Index Sensing

“…Moreover, the resonances can be pushed to the Vis range by tailoring the PM nanostructures to larger sizes or by utilizing them for sensing media or analyte molecules with larger R.I. Compared with the noble metals, PMs are much less expensive due to their natural abundance in the Earth, and the plasmonic properties of PMs can be readily extended across a broader electromagnetic spectrum. , In spite of the apparent advantages of plasmonic PMs, there was a scarcity of studies about their utilization for various device applications until recently. ,− The absorption loss of In is smaller than that of Al due to a smaller imaginary part of the dielectric function, which makes In a better PM plasmonic material than Al. Recently, Wang et al used In nano-particle array to induce a plasmonic blue-light photoswitch; Kumamoto et al used multigrain In-coated substrate for deep UV surface enhanced resonance Raman scattering; Ross et al used Al and In dimers with small gaps as UV plasmonic nanoantennas; Magnan et al used In/silica core–shell nanoparticles as plasmonic enhancers of molecular luminescence in the UV region; and Gibson used In islands to increase the photoluminescence intensity of quantum dots. , However, no work has been reported on using In for R.I. sensing.…”

“…Compared with the noble metals, PMs are much less expensive due to their natural abundance in the Earth, and the plasmonic properties of PMs can be readily extended across a broader electromagnetic spectrum. 17,18 In spite of the apparent advantages of plasmonic PMs, there was a scarcity of studies about their utilization for various device applications until recently. 17,19−23 The absorption loss of In is smaller than that of Al due to a smaller imaginary part of the dielectric function, 19 which makes In a better PM plasmonic material than Al.…”