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[Display omitted] • A self-powered ultraviolet photodetector based on bismuth layered perovskite ferroelectric thin films has been presented. • The reversal photocurrent response mechanism of the Pt/BNT/Pt heterostructure has been clarified based on the driving internal electric field. • The ferroelectric depolarization field was proved as an efficient method to regulate the performance of a ferroelectric photodetectors. The photovoltaic effect of ferroelectric materials has been widely concerned. With the development of wearable technology and the requirements of device miniaturization, self-powered devices have been studying by more and more researchers. The photovoltaic effect of ferroelectric materials provides a possibility for self-powered photodetectors. Here, we have investigated the photovoltaic effect and the self-powered ultraviolet photodetecting properties in Pt/Bi 3.15 Nd 0.85 Ti 3 O 12 (BNT)/Pt heterostructure. The Bi 3.15 Nd 0.85 Ti 3 O 12 (BNT) thin films were prepared by sol–gel method on Pt/Ti/SiO 2 /Si substrate. XRD pattern and P-E loops shows that BNT films are polycrystalline with typical ferroelectric hysteresis. The BNT films shows obvious photovoltaic characteristics, with an open-circuit voltage V OC of 0.67 ± 0.04 V and a short-circuit current density J SC of 2.27 ± 0.08 μA/cm2 at the wavelength of 365 nm of a power of 77.50 mW/cm2. The zero bias transient photocurrent response under light ON and OFF states confirms the photodetecting ability of the heterolayered structure. The responsivity and the detection rate of the self-powered ultraviolet photodetector were calculated to be 0.047 ± 0.003 mA/W and (1.47 ± 0.04) × 109 Jones, respectively. The reversal photocurrent response mechanism of the Pt/BNT/Pt heterostructure has been clarified based on the driving internal electric field for the separation and transport of the photo-excited electron-hole pairs. The J SC dependance on the polarization direction reveals the electrical manipulation nature of the BNT based self-powered photodetectors, providing a novel route for the design of photodetectors based on ferroelectric oxides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]