Carrier density modulation and photocarrier transportation of graphene/InSb heterojunction middle-wavelength infrared photodetectors

The photoresponse mechanism of graphene/InSb heterojunction middle-wavelength infrared (MWIR) photodetectors was investigated. The devices comprised a graphene/InSb heterojunction as a carrier-injection region and an insulator region of graphene on tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) for photogating. The MWIR photoresponse was significantly amplified with an increase in the graphene/TEOS cross-sectional area by covering the entire detector with graphene. The graphene-channel dependence of the MWIR photoresponse indicated that the graphene carrier density was modulated by photocarrier accumulation at the TEOS/InSb boundary, resulting in photogating. The dark current of the devices was suppressed by a decrease in the graphene/InSb carrier-injection region and the formation of the heterojunction using an n-type InSb substrate. The results indicate that photocarrier transportation was dominated by the formation of a Schottky barrier at the interface of the graphene/InSb heterojunction and a Fermi-level shift under bias application. The high-responsivity and low-dark-current photoresponse mechanism was attributed to the graphene/InSb heterojunction diode behavior and the photogating effect. The devices combining the aforementioned features had a noise equivalent power of 0.43 pW / Hz1/2. The results obtained in our study will contribute to the development of high-performance graphene-based IR image sensors.