Photothermal-pyroelectric-plasmonic coupling for high performance and tunable band-selective photodetector

With the rapid development of communication technology, human-computer interaction, and other fields, more functional requirements have been conveyed to the sensors. It is well known that metallic nanostructures are exceptional tools to manipulate light at nanoscale owing to their ability to support surface plasmons. By modulating the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect, the near-field absorption of metal nanoparticles (NPs) array under light stimulation shows a significant difference. In this study, we successfully leveraged the interfacial LSPR effect to overcome the spectral insensitivity of the pyroelectric devices. For instance, the demonstrated pyroelectric devices had an interface modified with Ag or Au NPs respectively and exhibited the best current-response capability at 405 nm or 940 nm. In addition, its wavelength selection ratio was increased by a factor of 80. Remarkably, based on the femtosecond plasma decay exothermic process, plasmonic metal NPs and ZnO nanowires (NWs) have a photothermal-pyroelectric-plasmonic coupling effect that leads to ultra-fast heating of NWs. This study includes an in-sight analysis of the photothermal-pyroelectric-plasmonic coupling mechanism, which constitutes an accessible method to develop the potential application of pyroelectric detectors in new functional fields.