UCLA

Photodetection is one of the vital functions for the multifunctional "More than Moore" (MtM) microchips urgently required by Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) applications. The further improvement of the performance of photodetectors faces various challenges, including materials, fabrication processes, and device structures. We demonstrate in this work MoS₂ photodetectors with a nanoscale channel length and a back-gate device structure. With the mechanically exfoliated six-monolayer-thick MoS₂, a Schottky contact between source/drain electrodes and MoS₂, a high responsivity of 4.1 × 10³ A W^-1, and a detectivity of 1.34 × 10¹³ cm Hz^1/2 W^-1 at 650 nm were achieved. The devices are also sensitive to multiwavelength lights, including 520 and 405 nm. The electrical and optoelectronic properties of the MoS₂ photodetectors were studied in depth, and the working mechanism of the devices was analyzed. The photoinduced Schottky barrier lowering (PIBL) was found to be important for the high performance of the phototransistor.