Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application
Abstract Metal oxides, due to their wide band gap, are well suited for use in photodetectors as the active light-absorbing layer. While there have been extensive studies on n-type oxides, such as tungsten oxide and zinc oxide, there is relatively little work on the use of p-type oxides, such as nick...
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2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-06485-5 |
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| author | Swati Suman Anupama Behra Parasuraman Swaminathan |
| author_facet | Swati Suman Anupama Behra Parasuraman Swaminathan |
| author_sort | Swati Suman |
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| description | Abstract Metal oxides, due to their wide band gap, are well suited for use in photodetectors as the active light-absorbing layer. While there have been extensive studies on n-type oxides, such as tungsten oxide and zinc oxide, there is relatively little work on the use of p-type oxides, such as nickel oxide (NiO), for photodetectors. Using these p-type oxides along with n-type conducting oxides to form heterojunctions can improve the detection capabilities by efficient separation of charge carriers. In this work, the photoresponse of a p-type NiO thin film, grown by room temperature reactive magnetron sputtering from a pure nickel target onto a conducting n-type indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) substrate, is investigated. Different ratios of oxygen to argon (10/45, 15/45, and 20/45) during sputtering are investigated, and the effect of oxygen concentration on the optical properties of the NiO film is studied, which helps in modulating the photoresponse of the developed detector. The O2/Ar ratio, with a value of 15/45, is found to perform better among the three ratios. For the corresponding photodetector, the current under illumination, is found to be nearly three orders of magnitude higher than the dark current, even at a very low applied voltage of 0.1 V. The calculated responsivity (at 0.012 A/W) is found to be the best among all three values. The device also has an excellent transient current response with a rise time of 0.5 s and a decay time of 1.4 s, which is the fastest transient behavior among all three ratio-based devices. The work paves the way for using metal oxide-based heterojunctions as wide band gap photodetectors. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-ace8bbd4fe2a49f480dad85ae9128fd12025-01-19T12:34:51ZengSpringerDiscover Applied Sciences3004-92612025-01-017111410.1007/s42452-025-06485-5Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector applicationSwati Suman0Anupama Behra1Parasuraman Swaminathan2Electronic Materials and Thin Films Lab, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) MadrasElectronic Materials and Thin Films Lab, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) MadrasElectronic Materials and Thin Films Lab, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) MadrasAbstract Metal oxides, due to their wide band gap, are well suited for use in photodetectors as the active light-absorbing layer. While there have been extensive studies on n-type oxides, such as tungsten oxide and zinc oxide, there is relatively little work on the use of p-type oxides, such as nickel oxide (NiO), for photodetectors. Using these p-type oxides along with n-type conducting oxides to form heterojunctions can improve the detection capabilities by efficient separation of charge carriers. In this work, the photoresponse of a p-type NiO thin film, grown by room temperature reactive magnetron sputtering from a pure nickel target onto a conducting n-type indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) substrate, is investigated. Different ratios of oxygen to argon (10/45, 15/45, and 20/45) during sputtering are investigated, and the effect of oxygen concentration on the optical properties of the NiO film is studied, which helps in modulating the photoresponse of the developed detector. The O2/Ar ratio, with a value of 15/45, is found to perform better among the three ratios. For the corresponding photodetector, the current under illumination, is found to be nearly three orders of magnitude higher than the dark current, even at a very low applied voltage of 0.1 V. The calculated responsivity (at 0.012 A/W) is found to be the best among all three values. The device also has an excellent transient current response with a rise time of 0.5 s and a decay time of 1.4 s, which is the fastest transient behavior among all three ratio-based devices. The work paves the way for using metal oxide-based heterojunctions as wide band gap photodetectors.https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-06485-5Nickel oxideMagnetron sputteringPhotoresponseOxygen concentrationHeterojunction |
| spellingShingle | Swati Suman Anupama Behra Parasuraman Swaminathan Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application Discover Applied Sciences Nickel oxide Magnetron sputtering Photoresponse Oxygen concentration Heterojunction |
| title | Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| title_full | Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| title_fullStr | Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| title_full_unstemmed | Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| title_short | Oxygen-modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| title_sort | oxygen modulated photoresponse in nickel oxide thin films for wide band gap photodetector application |
| topic | Nickel oxide Magnetron sputtering Photoresponse Oxygen concentration Heterojunction |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-06485-5 |
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