Modulating electrical and photoelectrical properties of one-step electrospun one-dimensional SnO₂ arrays

One-dimensional nanostructured SnO₂ has attracted intense research interest due to its advantageous properties, including a large surface-to-volume ratio, high optical transparency and typical n-type properties. However, how to fabricate high-performance and multifunctional electronic devices based on 1D nanostructured SnO₂ via low-cost and efficient preparation techniques is still a huge challenge. In this work, a low-cost, one-step electrospun technology was employed to synthesize the SnO₂ nanofiber (NF) and nanotube (NT) arrays. The electrical and photoelectrical parameters of SnO₂ NTs-based devices were effectively controlled through simple changes to the amount of Sn in the precursor solution. The optimal 0.2 SnO₂ NTs-based field effect transistors (FETs) with 0.2 g SnCl₂*4H₂O per 5 ml in the precursor solution exhibit a high saturation current (∼9 × 10^-5 A) and a large on/off ratio exceeding 2.4 × 10⁶. Additionally, 0.2 SnO₂ NTs-based FET also exhibit a narrowband deep-UV photodetectivity (240-320 nm), including an ultra-high photocurrent of 307 μA, a high photosensitivity of 2003, responsibility of 214 A W^-1 and detectivity of 2.19 × 10¹³ Jones. Furthermore, the SnO₂ NTs-based transparent photodetectors were as well be integrated with fluorine-doped tin oxide glass and demonstrated a high optical transparency and photosensitivity (∼199). All these results elucidate the significant advantages of these electrospun SnO₂ NTs for next-generation multifunctional electronics and transparent photonics.