Self-Powered Ultraviolet Photodetector with Superhigh Photoresponsivity (3.05 A/W) Based on the GaN/Sn:Ga₂O₃ pn Junction.

Abstract

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation has a variety of impacts including the health of humans, the production of crops, and the lifetime of buildings. Based on the photovoltaic effect, self-powered UV photodetectors can measure and monitor UV radiation without any power consumption. However, the current low photoelectric performance of these detectors has hindered their practical use. In our study, a super-high-performance self-powered UV photodetector based on a GaN/Sn:Ga₂O₃ pn junction was generated by depositing a Sn-doped n-type Ga₂O₃ thin film onto a p-type GaN thick film. The responsivity at 254 nm reached up to 3.05 A/W without a power supply and had a high UV/visible rejection ratio of R_254 nm/ R_400 nm = 5.9 × 10³ and an ideal detectivity at 1.69 × 10¹³ cm·Hz^1/2·W^-1, which is well beyond the level of previous self-powered UV photodetectors. Moreover, our device also has a low dark current (1.8 × 10^-11A), a high I_photo/ I_dark ratio (∼10⁴), and a fast photoresponse time of 18 ms without bias. These outstanding performance results are attributed to the rapid separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs driven by a high built-in electric field in the interface depletion region of the GaN/Sn:Ga₂O₃ pn junction. Our results provide an improved and easy route to constructing high-performance self-powered UV photodetectors that can potentially replace traditional high-energy-consuming UV detection systems.