Market Assessment for Sensor, System and Method System for Acquiring a Signal Indicative of an Intensity Spectrum of Electromagnetic Radiation

从光通信和环境传感到过程控制和材料表征，各种各样的技术都需要将入射光信号转换为电流或电压的光电探测器。光电探测器的一个关键性能指标是可以感知的光的光谱范围。由于不同的应用在光谱的不同部分运行，工作范围宽的宽带探测器在普遍情况下更为有用。其他高性能指标包括快速响应速度、低光水平感应的高探测性、室温可操作性（无需低温冷却）和器件小型化（允许可扩展生产）。研究人员设计了一种新型的光电探测器异质结构，结合了四种不同的二维（2D）材料，在室温下，从中红外（IR）到深紫外（UV），或0.3到5.0 eV，对能量跨越十年的光敏感。峰值比探测率达到3.4 × 10^9琼斯，电带宽为2.2 MHz，是迄今为止报道的具有深紫外到中红外灵敏度的探测器中最快的。最后，在不影响宽带光谱响应的情况下，可以使有源区域小于1平方微米。因此，这种高性能光电探测器可以在许多不同的应用中无处不在地使用。该技术于2021年11月17日提交了美国临时专利申请，并于2022年4月11日发表了一篇论文（Nano Lett. 2022, 22, 8, 3425-3432）。

Photodetectors which convert an incoming light signal to electric current or voltage are needed for an extremely diverse range of technologies from optical communication and environmental sensing to process control and materials characterization. One key performance metric for photodetectors is the spectral range of light that can be sensed. Broadband detectors that work over a wide range are more useful universally as different applications operate in different parts of the light spectrum. Other high-performance metrics include fast response speed, high detectivity for sensing of low light levels, room temperature operability which forgoes the need for cryogenic cooling, and device miniaturizability to allow for scalable production.The researchers have designed a novel photodetector heterostructure incorporating four different two-dimensional (2D) materials that is sensitive to light across a decade in energy from the mid infrared (IR) to deep ultraviolet (UV), or 0.3 to 5.0 eV, at room temperature. The peak specific detectivity reaches 3.4x10^9 Jones and the electrical bandwidth is 2.2 MHz, the fastest yet reported for detectors with deep UV to mid IR sensitivity. Finally, the active area can be made smaller than one square micron while unaffecting the broadband spectral response. This high-performance photodetector thus can be used ubiquitously across many different applications. For this technology, a provisional US patent application was filed on Nov. 17, 2021, and a paper was published on Apr. 11, 2022 (Nano Lett. 2022, 22, 8, 3425-3432).