Large-Scale Ultrathin 2D Wide-Bandgap BiOBr Nanoflakes for Gate-Controlled Deep-Ultraviolet Phototransistors

Ternary two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors with controllable wide bandgap, high ultraviolet (UV) absorption coefficient, and critical tuning freedom degree of stoichiometry variation have a great application prospect for UV detection. However, as-reported ternary 2D semiconductors often possess a bandgap below 3.0 eV, which must be further enlarged to achieve comprehensively improved UV, especially deep-UV (DUV), detection capacity. Herein, sub-one-unit-cell 2D monolayer BiOBr nanoflakes (approximate to 0.57 nm) with a large size of 70 mu m are synthesized for high-performance DUV detection due to the large bandgap of 3.69 eV. Phototransistors based on the 2D ultrathin BiOBr nanoflakes deliver remarkable DUV detection performance including ultrahigh photoresponsivity (R-lambda, 12739.13 A W-1), ultrahigh external quantum efficiency (EQE, 6.46 x 10(6)%), and excellent detectivity (D*, 8.37 x 10(12) Jones) at 245 nm with a gate voltage (V-g) of 35 V attributed to the photogating effects. The ultrafast response (tau(rise) = 102 mu s) can be achieved by utilizing photoconduction effects at V-g of -40 V. The combination of photocurrent generation mechanisms for BiOBr-based phototransistors controlled by V-g can pave a way for designing novel 2D optoelectronic materials to achieve optimal device performance.