Au decorated ultrathin WS2-based single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerator for flexible self-powered photodetector

We report on the fabrication of a self-powered Au decorated WS2 based single-electrode triboelectric nano -generator (STENG) for possible application in a photodetector. Flexible and wearable STENG has been fabricated on the platform of cellulose paper and PVA membrane substrate. Different triboelectric counter layers such as Al and PTFE have been deployed to investigate the triboelectric operation. It has been observed that the Au-WS2- PTFE STENG generates the highest output voltage (7.9 V) amongst all the counter electrode systems. The device exhibits maximum power of 1.4 mu W and can accumulate a charge upto 64 nC within 3 s. It has been observed that in the presence of light the STENG generates higher output voltage as compared to dark and exhibits photo -detection property with a sensitivity of 0.4 Vm2/W. The voltage measurement in the UV to visible region in-dicates that the present photodetector can be participating in the broadband applications. In addition, the excellent response of durability and long-term stability investigation suggests that the fabricated STENG can be used for long-term performance. This present work can pave the opportunity in a prototype WS2-based self -power photodetector for the next generation.

Automated summary

We have fabricated a self-powered Au decorated WS2-based single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerator (STENG) for potential application as a photodetector. The flexible and wearable STENG was constructed on a cellulose paper and PVA membrane substrate. Different triboelectric counter layers including Al and PTFE were used to investigate the triboelectric operation, and it was found that the Au-WS2-PTFE STENG generated the highest output voltage among all the counter electrode systems. The device exhibited a maximum power of 1.4 μW and was capable of accumulating a charge of up to 64 nC within 3 seconds. The STENG showed higher output voltage in the presence of light compared to dark conditions, and demonstrated photo-detection property with a sensitivity of 0.4 Vm2/W. The measured voltage in the UV to visible region suggested that the photodetector could be utilized in broadband applications. The excellent durability and long-term stability of the fabricated STENG indicated its potential for long-term performance, and this study could lead to the development of a prototype WS2-based self-power photodetector for the next generation.