Wang Jiaqi, Xie Zhemiao, Lu Guanxuan, Liu Jiayu Alexander, Yeow John T W
Advanced Micro-/Nano- Devices Lab, Department of Systems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1 Canada.
Microsyst Nanoeng. 2023 Feb 27;9:21. doi: 10.1038/s41378-022-00454-3. eCollection 2023.
Photothermoelectric (PTE) detectors functioning on the infrared spectrum show much potential for use in many fields, such as energy harvesting, nondestructive monitoring, and imaging fields. Recent advances in low-dimensional and semiconductor materials research have facilitated new opportunities for PTE detectors to be applied in material and structural design. However, these materials applied in PTE detectors face some challenges, such as unstable properties, high infrared reflection, and miniaturization issues. Herein, we report our fabrication of scalable bias-free PTE detectors based on TiC and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) composites and characterization of their composite morphology and broadband photoresponse. We also discuss various PTE engineering strategies, including substrate choices, electrode types, deposition methods, and vacuum conditions. Furthermore, we simulate metamaterials using different materials and hole sizes and fabricated a gold metamaterial with a bottom-up configuration by simultaneously combining MXene and polymer, which achieved an infrared photoresponse enhancement. Finally, we demonstrate a fingertip gesture response using the metamaterial-integrated PTE detector. This research proposes numerous implications of MXene and its related composites for wearable devices and Internet of Things (IoT) applications, such as the continuous biomedical tracking of human health conditions.
在红外光谱上工作的光热电器件（PTE）在许多领域展现出巨大的应用潜力，如能量收集、无损监测和成像领域。低维材料和半导体材料研究的最新进展为PTE探测器在材料和结构设计中的应用带来了新机遇。然而，应用于PTE探测器的这些材料面临一些挑战，如性能不稳定、红外反射率高以及小型化问题。在此，我们报告基于碳化钛（TiC）和聚（3,4-乙撑二氧噻吩）：聚苯乙烯磺酸盐（PEDOT:PSS）复合材料制备可扩展的无偏置PTE探测器及其复合形态和宽带光响应特性。我们还讨论了各种PTE工程策略，包括衬底选择、电极类型、沉积方法和真空条件等方面。此外，我们使用不同材料和孔尺寸对超材料进行了模拟，并通过同时结合MXene和聚合物以自下而上的结构制备了一种金超材料，实现了红外光响应增强。最后，我们展示了使用集成超材料的PTE探测器实现的指尖手势响应。本研究提出了MXene及其相关复合材料对于可穿戴设备和物联网（IoT）应用的诸多意义，例如对人类健康状况的持续生物医学跟踪监测等方面意义。
