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Two-dimensional semiconductors (2DSEM) based on van der Waals crystals offer important avenues for nanotechnologies beyond the constraints of Moore's law and traditional semiconductors, such as silicon (Si). However, their application necessitates precise engineering of material properties and scalable manufacturing processes. The ability to oxidize Si to form silicon dioxide (SiO2) was crucial for the adoption of Si in modern technologies. Here, we report on the thermal oxidation of the 2DSEM gallium selenide (GaSe). The nanometer-thick layers are grown by molecular beam epitaxy on transparent sapphire (Al2O3) and feature a centro-symmetric polymorph of GaSe. Thermal annealing of the layers in an oxygen-rich environment promotes the chemical transformation and full conversion of GaSe into a thin layer of crystalline Ga2O3, paralleled by the formation of coherent Ga2O3/Al2O3 interfaces. Versatile functionalities are demonstrated in photon sensors based on GaSe and Ga2O3, ranging from electrical insulation to unfiltered deep ultraviolet optoelectronics, unlocking the technological potential of GaSe nanostructures and their amorphous and crystalline oxides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colloidal low-dimensional photo-sensitive nanomaterials have attracted significant interest for optoelectronic device applications where inkjet printing offers a high accuracy and low waste route for their deposition on silicon-based, as well as flexible, devices. However, to achieve photodetection and displays with absorption and emission tuneable across the range from the ultraviolet (UV) to the near infrared (NIR), the availability of printable optically active materials needs to be addressed. In this work we develop printable ink formulations of graphene quantum dots (GQDs), NaYF4:(20%Yb and/or 2%Er doped) upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs), and PbS quantum dots (QDs) and demonstrate their use in devices such as graphene-based photodetectors and fluorescent displays. The ink formulations, printing strategies and post-deposition techniques were developed and optimised to enable the deposition of photo-sensitive nanomaterial layers in a controllable manner onto flexible polymeric, glass and silicon substrates. The nanomaterials retained their properties post deposition, as we exemplify by photosensitisation of single layer graphene (SLG) photodetector devices, with spectral responsivity tuneable from the UV for GQD/SLG to the NIR for UCNP/SLG and PbS/SLG devices, with photoresponsivity up to R ∼ 103 A W−1. Fluorescent displays were also demonstrated consisting of CsPbBr3 perovskite nanocrystals and UCNPs inkjet printed onto flexible transparent substrates, for selective sensing of UV and NIR light. This work successfully expands the material library of printable optically active materials and demonstrates their potential for printed optoelectronics, including flexible devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stable all‐inorganic CsPbX3 perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs) with high optical yield can be used in combination with graphene as photon sensors with high responsivity (up to 106 A W−1) in the VIS‐UV range. The performance of these perovskite/graphene field effect transistors (FET) is mediated by charge transfer processes at the perovskite – graphene interface. Here, the effects of high electric (up to 3000 kV cm−1) and magnetic (up to 60 T) fields applied perpendicular to the graphene plane on the charge transfer are reported. The authors demonstrate electric‐ and magnetic‐field dependent charge transfer and a slow (>100 s) charge dynamics. Magneto‐transport experiments in constant (≈0.005 T s−1) and pulsed (≈1000 T s−1) magnetic fields reveal pronounced hysteresis effects in the transfer characteristics of the FET. A magnetic time is used to explain and model differences in device behavior under fast (pulsed) and slowly (continuous) changing magnetic fields. The understanding of the dynamics of the charge transfer in perovskite/graphene heterostructures developed here is relevant for exploitation of these hybrid systems in electronics and optoelectronics, including ultrasensitive photon detectors and FETs for metrology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inorganic perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) have demonstrated a number of unique optical and electronic properties for optoelectronic applications. However, the physical properties of these nanostructures, such as the dynamics of charge carriers on different timescales and their effect on the optical recombination of carriers, are not yet fully understood. This work reports on a slow (>1 s) reversible quenching of the NC photoluminescence due to a light‐induced Stark effect involving defects on the surface of the NCs and the redistribution of photoexcited carriers onto the NC surface. This phenomenon can influence the operation of optoelectronic devices based on these NCs, including hybrid photosensors based on graphene decorated with inorganic perovskite NCs, revealing their prospects and limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2D materials have unique structural and electronic properties with potential for transformative device applications. However, such devices are usually bespoke structures made by sequential deposition of exfoliated 2D layers. There is a need for scalable manufacturing techniques capable of producing high‐quality large‐area devices comprising multiple 2D materials. Additive manufacturing with inks containing 2D material flakes is a promising solution. Inkjet‐printed devices incorporating 2D materials have been demonstrated, however there is a need for greater understanding of quantum transport phenomena as well as their structural properties. Experimental and theoretical studies of inkjet‐printed graphene structures are presented. Detailed electrical and structural characterization is reported and explained by comparison with transport modeling that include inter‐flake quantum tunneling transport and percolation dynamics. The results reveal that the electrical properties are strongly influenced by the flakes packing fraction and by complex meandering electron trajectories, which traverse several printed layers. Controlling these trajectories is essential for printing high‐quality devices that exploit the properties of 2D materials. Inkjet‐printed graphene is used to make a field effect transistor and Ohmic contacts on an InSe phototransistor. This is the first time that inkjet‐printed graphene has successfully replaced single layer graphene as a contact material for 2D metal chalcogenides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]