Vertically stacked monolithic perovskite colour photodetectors.

Tsarev, Sergey; Proniakova, Daria; Liu, Xuqi; Wu, Erfu; Matt, Gebhard J; Sakhatskyi, Kostiantyn; Ferraresi, Lorenzo L A; Kothandaraman, Radha et al. · Nature · 2025

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Modern colour image sensors face challenges in further improving sensitivity and image quality because of inherent limitations in light utilization efficiency<sup>1</sup>. A major factor contributing to these limitations is the use of passive optical filters, which absorb and dissipate a substantial amount of light, thereby reducing the efficiency of light capture<sup>2</sup>. On the contrary, active optical filtering in Foveon-type vertically stacked architectures still struggles to deliver optimal performance owing to their lack of colour selectivity, making them inefficient for precise colour imaging<sup>3</sup>. Here we introduce an innovative architecture for colour sensor arrays that uses multilayer monolithically stacked lead halide perovskite thin-film photodetectors. Perovskite bandgap tunability<sup>4</sup> is utilized to selectively absorb the visible light spectrum's red, green and blue regions, eliminating the need for colour filters. External quantum efficiencies of 50%, 47% and 53% are demonstrated for the red, green and blue channels, respectively, as well as a colour accuracy of 3.8% in ΔE<sub>Lab</sub> outperforming the state-of-the-art colour-filter array and Foveon-type photosensors. The image sensor design improves light utilization in colour sensors and paves the way for the next generation of highly sensitive, artefact-free images with enhanced colour fidelity.