Recent advancements and progress in development in chalcogenide (S, Se)-based thin films for high-performance photodetectors: a review

Abstract

Scientific and technical communities often debate photodetection as a significant technology due to its unquestionable and extensive usage in business and research. Traditional bulk semiconductors like GaN, Si, and InGaAs are being used less and less for photodetection in industry because they aren’t mechanically stable or flexible enough, they have expensive substrates, and charge carriers can’t move around freely enough. Nonetheless, 2D materials such as transition-metal nitrides, chalcogenides, and carbides, in addition to graphene, are leading the path toward achieving more sophisticated results and surpassing the limitations imposed by traditional semiconductors. This is due to their exceptional electronic and mechanical properties, which include flexibility, adjustable bandgaps, high mobilities, and ample potential for constructing heterojunctions of chalcogenides-based thin films. Given the recent surge in photodetection research, the field has expanded significantly and requires a systematic compilation of pertinent scientific knowledge. A comprehensive study must address many aspects of chalcogenides-based thin film manufacturing strategies, assembly procedures, device integration, spectral properties, heterojunction potential, and future research prospects. This paper specifically examines the use of chalcogenides-based thin film materials in photodetection. These areas include solar-blind, visible, near-infrared, and broadband detectors. We have expanded our discussion to include photodetector performance parameters and how the latest chalcogenides-based thin films formed by combining ordinary semiconductors have resulted in high-performance UV, visible, and IR range photodetection. These materials have the potential to be used as photodetectors. Ultimately, we provide a comparative demonstration of the performance characteristics of photodetectors, offering a distinct assessment of the suitability of these materials for use in the advancement of next-generation photodetectors.