Improving performance of ZnO Schottky photodetector by inserting MXenes modified-layer

The development of low-cost and high-performance ZnO Schottky photodetectors (PDs) has drawn intensive attention, but still a challenge due to their poor conductivity and low light utilization efficiency. Here, we introduce Ti3C2TX into ZnO films to fabricate Schottky UV PDs via facile spin-coated method. The fabricated ZnO/Ti3C2TX/ZnO compound film shows outstanding performance on photocurrent, responsivity, noise equivalent power (NEP), normalized detection rate (D*), and linear dynamic region (LDR), compared with the original ZnO device. The photocurrent is significantly increased by 466%, and the responsivity is improved by one order of magnitude. In addition, it exhibits relatively low NEP (5.99 × 10−11 W), strong D* (2.53 × 109 Jones), and high LDR (28 dB). The superior performance is ascribed to the enhanced conductivity and light absorption of ZnO film after introduction of Ti3C2TX modification layer, leading to simultaneously faster electron transfer, lower the radiation recombination of electron and holes on the ZnO/Ti3C2TX/ZnO compound film. This work provides a facile way to develop low-cost and high-performance ZnO Schottky PDs. In order to improve the performance of ZnO Schottky PDs, a new strategy of using Ti3C2TX as the modification layer of ZnO thin films was proposed. The intercalation of Ti3C2TX not only improves the electrical and optical properties of the ZnO film, but also enhances its crystallinity, reduces defects, and greatly enhances the electron-hole separation and collection, and the device shows a significant photocurrent boost. [Display omitted]