Surface photo-charge effect in doped-ZnO nanorods for high-performance self-powered ultraviolet photodetectors.

The unique photo-charge characteristics of chlorine-doped zinc oxide nanorods (Cl-ZnO NRs) are explored for the first time in ultraviolet (UV) photodetector (PD) that offers an outstanding self-powered photoresponse towards low UV illumination signals. A self-powered Cl-ZnO NRs PD exhibits superior photon detection speed of the order of a few ms with high sensitivity and photoelasticity. Therefore, the presented PD opens up a novel route to fabricate highly efficient self-powered PDs on a large scale without employing complex multilayer systems.