Organic Thin-Film Red-Light Photodiodes with Tunable Spectral Response Via Selective Exciton Activation

Red and near-infrared light detection is vital for numerous applications, including full-color imaging, optical communication, and machine vision. However, this development is hindered by a limited choice of small band gap and narrow-bandwidth materials. Here, we report a device principle with a simple organic planar heterojunction architecture that enables a selective activation of excitons for tuning the photoresponse spectra to fabricate thin-film, filterless, red-light organic photodiodes. A sequential solution-processed active layer is formed by depositing the top layer of PC71BM onto the predeposited bottom layer of doped P3HT. By adjusting the ratio of PTB7 in P3HT, an improved responsivity and a red-shift of the photoresponse peak from 645 to 745 nm are demonstrated simultaneously. Furthermore, the responsivity of 745 nm is enhanced over 5 times with a narrow full width at half-maximum of ∼50 nm at optimized doping ratio compared to the pristine PTB7 device. As a result, a high specific detectivity in excess of 1012 Jones and broad linear dynamic range of 103 dB are achieved. This design concept shows the possibility of realizing tunable red-light selectivity even at relatively thin-film thickness, which is intriguing for the implementation of high-resolution image sensors in the near future.