Giant Shift Photovoltaic Current in Group V-V Binary Nanosheets

The bulk photovoltaic effect shift current (SC), a constant photocurrent generated by irradiating polar homogeneous non-centrosymmetric materials has lately emerged as a possible option for next-generation photovoltaic systems that may potentially overcome the Shockley-Queisser limits. The current work predicts gigantic and anisotropic SC with multiple peaks across a wide range of frequencies in pristine 2D monolayer alpha-AsP and alpha-NP based on first-principle calculations. The dominant SC tensors components hosted by 2D monolayer alpha-AsP and alpha-NP are the in-plane, and reaches peaks of -154 mu AV(-2), and 87 mu AV(-2), respectively, in the UV region. The SC magnitudes of the alpha-AsP are not significantly affected by the spin-orbital coupling, while in alpha-NP, no such effect occurs. This study recommends new photovoltaic materials with strong SC peaks spread across the electromagnetic spectrum, largely within the UV region.

Automated summary

This study predicts the giant and anisotropic shift current (SC) in 2D monolayer alpha-AsP and alpha-NP based on first-principle calculations, with multiple peaks across a wide range of frequencies. The dominant SC components are in-plane and reach peak values of -154 mu AV(-2) and 87 mu AV(-2) in the UV region for alpha-AsP and alpha-NP, respectively. The findings recommend new photovoltaic materials with strong SC peaks spread across the electromagnetic spectrum, particularly in the UV region.