Efficient hot-electron extraction in two-dimensional semiconductor heterostructures by ultrafast resonant transfer

Abstract

Energy loss from hot-carrier cooling sets the thermodynamic limit for the photon-to-power conversion efficiency in optoelectronic applications. Efficient hot-electron extraction before cooling could reduce the energy loss and leads to efficient next generation devices, which, unfortunately, is challenging to achieve in conventional semiconductors. In this work, we explore hot-electron transfer in two-dimensional (2D) layered semiconductor heterostructures, which have shown great potential for exploring new physics and optoelectronic applications. Using broadband micro-area ultrafast spectroscopy, we firmly established a type I band alignment in the WS2–MoTe2 heterostructure and ultrafast (∼60 fs) hot-electron transfer from photoexcited MoTe2 to WS2. The hot-electron transfer efficiency increases with excitation energy or excess energy as a result of a more favorable continuous competition between resonant electron transfer and cooling, reaching 90% for hot electrons with 0.3 eV excess energy. This study reveals exciting opportunities of designing extremely thin absorber and hot-carrier devices using 2D semiconductors and also sheds important light on the photoinduced interfacial process including charge transfer and generation in 2D heterostructures and optoelectronic devices.