First-principles study of band alignment and electronic structure of Arsenene/SnS2 heterostructures

Currently, Stacking two or more 2D materials into a vertical heterostructures is currently a methods to obtain excellent electronic properties. In this work, the energy band alignment of Arsenene/SnS2 heterostructures, electronic structure including strain and electric field effects are investigated in detail. The results show that the intrinsic band gap of the Arsenene/SnS2 heterostructure is much smaller than Arsenene monolayer. The bilayer heterostructure is type II band alignment, which can effectively promote separation of the photo-generated electron-hole pairs. Its absorption range covers from visible light to ultraviolet light, and the light absorption intensity is up to 10(5) orders of magnitude. Meanwhile, the vertical strain and electric field between the layers can tune the band gap of the heterostructures, in which the electric field can realize the transition from semiconductor to metal. The results show that heterostructures has great potential for application in coming field of optoelectronic devices and the photovoltaic.

Automated summary

Stacking two or more 2D materials into a vertical heterostructure is a method to obtain excellent electronic properties. In this study, the energy band alignment, strain, and electric field effects of Arsenene/SnS2 heterostructures are investigated. The results show that the heterostructure has a smaller band gap compared to Arsenene monolayer. It has type II band alignment, which can effectively separate photo-generated electron-hole pairs. The band gap of the heterostructure can be tuned by vertical strain and electric field, with the electric field even enabling the transition from semiconductor to metal. These findings indicate the great potential of heterostructures in optoelectronic devices and photovoltaics.