Time-Domain Ab Initio Insights into the Reduced Nonradiative Electron–Hole Recombination in ReSe₂/MoS₂ van der Waals Heterostructure

Abstract

Two-dimensional (2D) ReSe₂ has attracted considerable interest due to its unique anisotropic mechanical, optical, and exitonic characteristics. Recent transient absorption experiments demonstrated a prolonged lifetime of photoexcited charge carriers by stacking ReSe₂ with MoS₂, but the underlying mechanism remains elusive. Here, by combining time-domain density functional theory with nonadiabatic molecular dynamics, we investigate the electronic properties and charge carrier dynamics of 2D ReSe₂/MoS₂ van der Waals (vdW) heterostructure. ReSe₂/MoS₂ has a type II band alignment that exhibits spatially distinguished conduction and valence band edges, and a built-in electric field is formed due to interface charge transfer. Remarkably, in spite of the decreased band gap and increased decoherence time, we demonstrate that the photocarrier lifetime of ReSe₂/MoS₂ is ∼5 times longer than that of ReSe₂, which originates from the greatly reduced nonadiabatic coupling that suppresses electron-hole recombination, perfectly explaining the experimental results. These findings not only provide physical insights into experiments but also shed light on future design and fabrication of functional optoelectronic devices based on 2D vdW heterostructures.