Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films
Abstract The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) spectral range (λ = 3–8 μm) enables important sensing and imaging applications, including non-invasive bioimaging, night vision, and autonomous navigation. Commercial MWIR photodetectors are limited to rigid imagers based on heteroepitaxial materials. There is a...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60942-8 |
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| _version_ | 1849334486954672128 |
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| author | Theodorus Jonathan Wijaya Naoki Higashitarumizu Shifan Wang Shogo Tajima Hyong Min Kim Shu Wang Dehui Zhang James Bullock Tomoyuki Yokota Takao Someya Ali Javey |
| author_facet | Theodorus Jonathan Wijaya Naoki Higashitarumizu Shifan Wang Shogo Tajima Hyong Min Kim Shu Wang Dehui Zhang James Bullock Tomoyuki Yokota Takao Someya Ali Javey |
| author_sort | Theodorus Jonathan Wijaya |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) spectral range (λ = 3–8 μm) enables important sensing and imaging applications, including non-invasive bioimaging, night vision, and autonomous navigation. Commercial MWIR photodetectors are limited to rigid imagers based on heteroepitaxial materials. There is an emerging need for mechanically flexible MWIR imagers to broaden their functionality and practicality. Recently, photodetectors using van der Waals (vdW) black phosphorus (BP) flakes have demonstrated highly sensitive room-temperature photodetection. Additionally, vdW materials are solution-processable, facilitating scalable processing and flexible device fabrication. In this work, we present flexible MWIR imagers consisting of photodiodes fabricated on thin plastic substrates using BP ink films. We demonstrate mechanically robust responsivity up to 2.5-mm bending radii and after 5000 bending cycles. Leveraging this flexibility, we achieve full-azimuthal imaging, detecting directional light sources with precision. These results establish a scalable approach for large-area, conformable MWIR imaging and pave the way for integration with flexible electronics. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-dcd38f9e8ed44ab49fca674d27d9e751 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-dcd38f9e8ed44ab49fca674d27d9e7512025-08-20T03:45:33ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111010.1038/s41467-025-60942-8Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink filmsTheodorus Jonathan Wijaya0Naoki Higashitarumizu1Shifan Wang2Shogo Tajima3Hyong Min Kim4Shu Wang5Dehui Zhang6James Bullock7Tomoyuki Yokota8Takao Someya9Ali Javey10Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaMaterials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National LaboratoryDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of MelbourneDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-kuDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-kuDepartment of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of CaliforniaAbstract The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) spectral range (λ = 3–8 μm) enables important sensing and imaging applications, including non-invasive bioimaging, night vision, and autonomous navigation. Commercial MWIR photodetectors are limited to rigid imagers based on heteroepitaxial materials. There is an emerging need for mechanically flexible MWIR imagers to broaden their functionality and practicality. Recently, photodetectors using van der Waals (vdW) black phosphorus (BP) flakes have demonstrated highly sensitive room-temperature photodetection. Additionally, vdW materials are solution-processable, facilitating scalable processing and flexible device fabrication. In this work, we present flexible MWIR imagers consisting of photodiodes fabricated on thin plastic substrates using BP ink films. We demonstrate mechanically robust responsivity up to 2.5-mm bending radii and after 5000 bending cycles. Leveraging this flexibility, we achieve full-azimuthal imaging, detecting directional light sources with precision. These results establish a scalable approach for large-area, conformable MWIR imaging and pave the way for integration with flexible electronics.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60942-8 |
| spellingShingle | Theodorus Jonathan Wijaya Naoki Higashitarumizu Shifan Wang Shogo Tajima Hyong Min Kim Shu Wang Dehui Zhang James Bullock Tomoyuki Yokota Takao Someya Ali Javey Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films Nature Communications |
| title | Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| title_full | Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| title_fullStr | Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| title_short | Mechanically flexible mid-wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| title_sort | mechanically flexible mid wave infrared imagers using black phosphorus ink films |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60942-8 |
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