Photodetectors Based on ZrS₃/MoS₂ Heterostructures

High-performance photodetectors with the detection capability of linearly polarized light have broad applications in both military and civilian fields. Quasi-one-dimensional ZrS₃ as an emerging anisotropic two-dimensional material has come under the spotlight owing to its intriguing properties. However, the performance of the ZrS₃ photodetector is seriously restricted by its low responsivity. Herein, a novel high-performance photodetector based on the van der Waals ZrS₃/MoS₂ heterostructure is proposed. Attributed to the charge trapping-assisted photogating effect, interlayer carrier transitions, and fast spatial separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs, the device displays superior photoresponse characteristics ranging from the ultraviolet to the visible spectrum in terms of high responsivity up to 212 A/W, an extraordinary external quantum efficiency of 8.5 × 10⁴%, and a prompt rise/decay time of 0.19/0.38 ms. In addition, owing to the profound birefringence and dichroism effects in ZrS₃ together with strong light-matter interactions in the heterostructure, profound linear-polarization sensitivity is demonstrated with a dichroic ratio of about 2.8. Overall, this photodetector not only is integrated with the excellent properties of ZrS₃ and monolayer MoS₂ but also further enhances the advantages through interlayer couplings, which demonstrate the strong potential of the ZrS₃-based devices for high-performance, ultrafast, and polarization-sensitive photodetection.