High-Performance Ultrabroadband Photodetector Based on Photothermoelectric Effect

Ultrabroadband photodetectors (PDs) working in the frequency range from the UV to THz regions of the spectrum play a crucial role in integrated multifunction photoelectric detection. Even so, a shortage of high-performance PDs has seriously restricted the overall development of this field. The present work demonstrates a high-performance, ultrabroadband PD with a composite nanostructure comprising a suspended carbon nanotube (CNT) film on which titanium and palladium are deposited. The application of titanium and palladium to the CNT film in this device provides n-doping and p-doping, respectively, and the deposited metal nanoparticles also ensure enhanced thermal localization. This device exhibits short response time, high responsivity, large linear dynamic range, and small noise equivalent power over the ultrabroadband spectrum based on a strong photothermoelectric effect. Numerical simulation results also confirm the effective doping and enhanced thermal localization in this PD resulting from the deposited metals. A theoretical analysis shows that the thermal conductivity of the composite film is no longer independent of the temperature over a wide temperature range. This work provides a simple but novel strategy for the design of high-performance ultrabroadband PDs.