Wafer-scale 2D semimetal heterostructures enabling mid-infrared motion tracking with in-sensor perceptual compression.

Abstract

Accurate motion detection and trajectory tracking are crucial for scientific and technological applications, but current techniques rely on high-pixel-density imaging arrays that demand extensive hardware and computational resources. Here, we demonstrate high-performance motion detection and tracking sensors based on in situ monolithically integrated wafer-scale telluride semimetals and germanium. Interfacial engineering enhances carrier transport while minimizing interfacial recombination, enabling room-temperature infrared detection up to 10.6 micrometers with a peak sensitivity of 91.6 millivolts per millimeter, a low nonlinearity of 5.1%, and a specific detectivity exceeding 10¹⁰ centimeter-square root hertz per watt in the mid-infrared range. These advancements facilitate real-time infrared position sensing and trajectory tracking with a resolution of 9.7 micrometers. With in-sensor compression, which achieves a 400× reduction by condensing data from 100 × 100 pixels to 5 × 5 elements, a sparse position-sensitive detector array achieves 95% accuracy in simultaneously identifying and tracking multiple dynamic targets. Our monolithically integrated semimetal sensors open avenues toward resource-efficient, precise motion analytics and perception.