FULL PAPER
Hybrid Heterojunction
Self-Powered and Broadband Photodetectors with GaN:
Layered rGO Hybrid Heterojunction
Krishnendu Sarkar, Mozakkar Hossain, Pooja Devi, K. D. M. Rao,* and Praveen Kumar*
The development of self-powered and broadband (NIR–Vis–UV)
photodetectors with high responsivity is essential for energy efficient
futuristic optoelectronic devices. A simple approach is reported to
formulate inorganic–organic (GaN/rGO: Ag NP) hybrid p–n heterojunction
photodetectors clasping with transparent Au nanowire network as the top
electrode. The heterojunction demonstrates excellent rectification ratio of
105 and broadband photoresponse due to GaN in ultraviolet (UV) region
and silver-loaded reduced graphene oxide (rGO: Ag NP) in visible to infrared
region. Further, the reducing effect of Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) to GO
along with its localized surface plasmon resonance is utilized to enhance
the response in near infrared (NIR) and the visible region in the presented
device structure. Transparent Au nanowire network works as an efficient
charge collector ensuing high responsivity and fast switching characteristics.
The heterojunction exhibits superior photoresponse with high on/off ratio
(104), responsivity (0.266 A W-1), and detectivity of (2.62 × 1011), under the
illumination of 360 nm light. Due to the high built-in-potential difference at
the heterojunctions, self-powered operation is demonstrated under entire
excitation wavelength (360–980 nm) range, which holds great futuristic
promises for cost-effective, stable, and efficient energy conserving electronics.
1. Introduction
Self-powered photodetectors that can convert optical excitation
into an electrical signal are essential for widespread applications
such as optical switches, imaging techniques, light-wave com-
munication, and so on.[1–4] Further, broadband photoresponse is
also necessary to have desirable functionalities over a wide range
Dr. K. Sarkar, Dr. P. Kumar
School of Materials Science
Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science
Kolkata 700032, India
E-mail: praveen.kumar@iacs.res.in
M. Hossain, Dr. K. D. M. Rao
School of Applied and Interdisciplinary Sciences and Technical
Research Centre
Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science
Kolkata 700032, India
E-mail: trckdmr@iacs.res.in
Dr. P. Devi
Central Scientific Instruments Organization
Sector-30C, Chandigarh 160030, India
The ORCID identification number(s) for the author(s) of this article
can be found under https://doi.org/10.1002/admi.201900923.
DOI: 10.1002/admi.201900923
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of wavelengths. Therefore, the combina-
tion of broadband photodetection with the
self-powered operation will unleash sev-
eral technological possibilities for future
optoelectronic devices and will ensure
low maintenance cost and small energy
consumption. Since the external power
supply unit is not required to drive self-
powered photodetectors, the device cost,
size, and weight will be greatly reduced,
which greatly enhances its adaptability for
futuristic miniaturized and lightweight
devices. This specific field of research has
recently drawn considerable attention from
the last few years. As a result of scien-
tific endeavor, several promising schemes
have emerged to realize self-powered
photodetectors utilizing p–n heterojunc-
tion, Schottky junctions, nanostructured
heterojunctions, and graphene-based het-
erostructures. However, yet there is a large
scope to improve the device performance
in terms of extending spectral response.
Either broadband responsivity (IR–Vis–
UV) or self-powered operation has been
demonstrated successfully for several bulk
materials as well as heterostructures.[5–18] There is a consider-
able enhancement in responsivity and operational wavelength
range of photodetectors. However, the much-needed broad-
band and self-powered photodetectors have not been realized
with a spectral range from ultraviolet (UV) to infrared (IR). Li
et al. in their work demonstrated an UV to IR (360–1200 nm)
photodetector with self-powered operation limited in the range
360–600 nm.[19] Zhao et al. fabricated a solar blind photode-
tector based on individual ZnO–Ga2O3 core–shell heterostruc-
ture with an ultrahigh responsivity of 9.7 mA W-1, however,
limiting its self-powered operation to UV regime.[20] Similar
self-powered devices with their operation confined in UV region
have been reported for p-GaN/n-ZnO heterojunction, Au/β-
Ga2O3 nanowire Schottky junction, and ZnO nanorods/CuSCN
heterojunctions.[9,21,22] In all the devices, the zero-bias operation
originates from the heterojunctions fabricated with materials
having different electronic properties. The basic idea behind
self-driving operation is to have a heterojunction with suffi-
cient built-in-potential difference to move the photogenerated
charge carriers across the junction. Therefore, heterojunction
itself should have the ability to provide the driving force for the
movement of charge carriers.[23] Hence, a proper selection of
photosensitive materials for heterostructure is the key for self-
driving mode over a broad range of optical excitation.
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The outstanding properties such as tunable bandgap, modu-
lated optoelectronic properties, advance electrical conductivity,
and light transmittance, scalability for the large area deposition,
make reduced graphene oxide (rGO) a suitable choice of het-
erostructure material for a wide range of applications including
photodetectors with limited success.[8,19,24–27] The optimiza-
tion of band-tuning of rGO heterostructure is crucial to have
high built-in-potential to enable self-powered operation over
a broadband response. Therefore, we selected GaN as a base
material, which demonstrated advanced optoelectronic proper-
ties and predicted to be one of the potential, effective, stable,
and efficient photoactive materials. We have designed a novel
photodetector featuring a hybrid rGO/GaN p–n heterojunc-
tion structure using a transparent metal nanowire network for
simultaneous efficient absorption of light and effective charge
transport. The developed built-in electric field at the interface
between rGO and GaN provides the driving force for rapid and
efficient separation and transport of photogenerated charge car-
riers. The studied heterojunction manifests high responsivity
with self-powered operation over the broad range of detection
from UV to NIR light. This unique design of heterostruc-
ture along with transparent metal nanowire network sets the
pathway towards a promising new direction for fabricating
advanced self-powered photodetectors.
2. Results and Discussion
The GaN:layered rGO hybrid p–n heterojunction fabrication
process involves simple and cost-effective steps as exemplified
in Figure 1. Initially, the n-doped GaN epitaxial layer is grown
using molecular beam epitaxy technique (MBE) on sapphire
(Al2O3) substrate (Figure 1i). Consequently, graphene oxide
monolayers dispersion solution along with 8% Ag nanoparticles
(NP) is spray-coated on the GaN/Al2O3 substrate (Figure 1ii).
The spray coating process is optimized to assemble layered
graphene oxide of thickness 60 nm. In order to reduce the gra-
phene oxide, the device was heated at 150 °C, which resulted
in the formation of GaN:layered rGO hybrid heterojunction
(Figure 1iii). In the final step, the top Au electrode is patterned
Figure 1.  Schematic illustration for the fabrication of GaN:layered rGO hybrid heterojunction. i) GaN on c-plane sapphire. ii) Spray coating of
GO:AgNP composite solution on GaN. iii) Thermal reduction of graphene oxide at 150 °C. iv) Formation of Au metal nanowire electrode by the
crackle lithography technique.
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using simple crackle lithography technique to harvest the light
at hybrid heterojunction (Figure 1iv). The transparent Au nano-
wire network is employed over GaN:layered rGO to complete
the device fabrication.
As fabricated devices were thoroughly characterized using
various microscopy and spectroscopy techniques as displayed
in Figure  2. The optical microscope images reveal the exist-
ence of Au nanowire network on rGO thin film (Figure S1,
Supporting Information). Scanning electron microscopy image
(Figure 2a) demonstrates that Au nanowire network is highly
interconnected with the seamless junction. The average width
of individual Au wire is found to be ≈1.5  µm with a thick-
ness of 140 nm (Figure S2, Supporting Information). The
cross-sectional SEM image of the hybrid P–N heterojunction
in Figure S3 (Supporting Information) discloses the presence
of GaN thin film, layers of rGO and Au nanowire network.
Importantly, the Au nanowire network is conformally con-
nected with rGO thin film, which is crucial for the charge
transfer. The optical quality of the optimized rGO:Ag NP film
and transparent Au wire network were probed by UV–Vis–NIR
spectroscopy as shown in Figure 2b. The optical transparency
of rGO:Ag NP thin film with and without Au nanowire net-
work is estimated to be 69% and 78% at 550 nm, respectively.
Further, these layers are transparent to the broad spectral
range of light from 300 to 1200 nm. The change in transpar-
ency with respect to wavelength is attributed to the absorbance
of rGO.[27] As demonstrated in the AFM image of Figure S4
(Supporting Information), layered rGO:Ag NP film thickness
is found to be 60 nm. This particular thickness of layered
rGO:Ag NP film enables sufficient light to reach hybrid het-
erojunction and higher thickness attenuates more light. The
optimal thickness of layered rGO:Ag NP film is vital for real-
izing high photoresponse. On the other hand, the reduction
of GO is carefully monitored by varying Ag NP concentration
from 0% to 15%. Figure 2c demonstrates the variation of ID/IG
ratio obtained from Raman spectroscopy with respect to Ag NP
loading, which revealed a minimum value at 8 wt% and indi-
cates an optimal reduction of GO. While beyond 8 wt% loading
ID/IG ratio increases (Figure S5, Supporting Information) due
to excess defects imposed by the Ag NPs (Note 1, Supporting
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Figure 2.  a) Top-view field emission scanning electron microscopy image of the fabricated device showing seamlessly interconnected metal wire
network on rGO layer. Scale bar is 10 µm. Inset shows the FESEM image of a single metal wire on rGO layer. The wire width is around 900 nm. Scale
bar is 1 µm. b) Transmittance spectra of rGO:Ag NP composite film with 8 wt% Ag NP loading and rGO:Ag NP film with Au transparent electrode.
c) The variation of ID/IG ratio with Ag NP loading as obtained from Raman spectroscopy. d) X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurement confirms
the effective reduction of GO due to annealing. e) XRD measurements of the fabricated device exhibit the characteristic diffraction peaks of GaN, rGO,
Ag NPs, and Au network. f) Selected area electron diffraction pattern shows the presence of rGO with the polycrystalline signature arising from Ag NPs.

Information). Further, optimal thermal reduction of GO at
8 wt% Ag NP loading is confirmed using XPS analysis as shown
in Figure 2d. The deconvoluted core-level C(1s) peak reveals
the presence of CC (free carbon) CO and CO-related
contribution. The results manifest that the number of CO
groups is heavily decreased due to loss of oxygen groups, which
indicates an effective reduction of GO. Therefore, 8 wt% Ag
NP loading is used in rGO:Ag NP composite for all the hybrid
heterojunctions. Furthermore, comparative X-ray diffraction
(XRD) studies were performed on GaN, GaN/rGO: Ag NP and
GaN/rGO: Ag NP/Au network as shown in Figure 2e. The peak
at 18.2° is assigned to rGO, whereas the characteristic peaks at
34.6°, 71.2°, 38.2°, 44.3°, 78.8°, and 64.6° are originated due
to the reflections from GaN (0002), GaN (0004), Ag (111), Ag
(200), Ag (311), and Au (220) planes, respectively. Transmission
electron microscopy (TEM) image divulges randomly decorated
Ag NPs (≈40 nm) on rGO matrix as shown in Figure S4
(Supporting Information). Selected area electron diffraction
(SAED) in Figure 2f indicates the polycrystalline nature of Ag
NPs with the signature of GO. Further, high-resolution TEM
image clearly demonstrates the polycrystalline structure of Ag
NPs (Figure S6, Supporting Information).

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Figure 3.  a) Current–voltage characteristics of the GaN/rGO:Ag NP-based hybrid heterojunction under dark. b) ln(σ), the logarithmic value of conduc-
tivity as a function of (E)1/2plot is fitted with a straight line. c) Double logarithmic current–voltage characteristics in forwarding bias show two distinct
regions. d) ln(σ), the logarithmic value of conductivity is plotted with respect to voltage and two regions are identified based on slope.
The electrical transport properties of inorganic–organic
(GaN/rGO: Ag NP) hybrid p–n heterojunction have been
explored by engaging the electrical connection as shown in
Figure  3a. The dark I–V characteristic of the heterojunction
reveals rectification behavior of a p–n junction diode and dem-
onstrates very low leakage current in reverse bias and up to
the cutoff voltage 1.1 V. After the cutoff voltage an exponen-
tial increase of current is observed and exhibits a rectification
ratio of ≈105. With the gradual increase of forward bias (>2 V),
Figure 3a reveals deviation of diode current from the ideal expo-
nential behavior, attributed to the series resistance of the het-
erojunction. However, the presence of high density of interface
trap states at the heterojunction provides a significant amount
of generation-recombination current. The ideality factor (n) is
estimated from the slope of the exponential regime in the semi-
logarithmic plot of the dark I–V characteristics, which is found
to be 4.[28] The high ideality factor is attributed to the recombi-
nation of charge carriers during multistep tunneling and inter-
face states at the heterojunction. The electrical conduction in
a disordered or amorphous interfacial layer can be ascribed to
the Poole–Frenkel equation, i.e., ln(σ) ∼ (E)1/2. The plot between
ln(σ) and (E)1/2 (see Figure 3b) exhibits straight line behavior,
which implies the existence of Poole–Frenkel conduction.[28]
The deviation of conductivity at higher electric fields is due
to the saturation of interfacial trap states and modification of
the charge carrier pathways.[29] Furthermore, to investigate the
transport of charge carriers through the heterojunction, the
dark I–V characteristic is plotted in the double logarithmic plot
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as shown in Figure 3c where two different slopes 0.6 and 12
were witnessed and identified as region I & II, respectively. In
region I, the dominant charge carriers are generated due to
thermal energy.[30] The region II is attributed to injected elec-
trons resulting in space charge limited current (SCLC) trans-
port. The mode of charge transport switches from the region
I to region II at 1.1 V, which ascertains that the saturation of
trap states in forward bias. In SCLC regime, i.e., region II, con-
ductivity obeys the following relation, (I/V) ∼ exp(SV), where
S  ∝ [1/N(EF)]. The density of localized trap states near Fermi
energy, i.e., N(EF) can be estimated from the plot between loga-
rithmic (I/V) and forward bias as shown in Figure 3d. The plot
further establishes two different regions A and B depending on
the slope of the curve. The region A signifies varying density of
trap states below 1.45 V whereas region B infers constant den-
sity of trap states. Therefore, SCLC is the dominant transport
mechanism in region II, where region A refers to occupation
of trap states in bias range of 1.0 to 1.45 V and region B,
V  > 1.45 V, represents saturation of trap states. Similar elec-
trical transport mechanisms have been observed in Si/single
InGaAs NW heterojunction-based nanorectifier diodes.[31]
In order to study the photoresponse of the hybrid heterojunc-
tion, photocurrent measurements were investigated under the
illumination of ultraviolet (UV), visible (vis), and near infrared
(NIR) lights. The I–V characteristics display photocurrent
under different optical excitations and confirm the existence
of photoresponse in UV, vis, and NIR excitations (Figure  4a).
Importantly, UV light illumination demonstrated high
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Figure 4. a) I–V characteristics of the device under illumination from UV (0.14 mW cm-2), visible (0.024 mW cm-2), and NIR (4 µW cm-2) in logarithmic
scale along with dark IV. b) Current on/off ratio measured under UV, visible, and NIR light. c) Responsivity and detectivity as a function of wavelength
in the range from 360 to 980 nm. d) On–off switching under UV and visible excitation with external bias (V = 3 V).

photocurrent due to more charge carrier generation rate as com-
pared to the recombination rate. The visible light exhibited rela-
tively high photoresponse as compared to NIR light as a result
of the higher energy of photons relative to the trap states energy.
The photocurrent on/off ratio as a function of forward bias
under different illuminations is shown in Figure 4b. The photo-
current on/off ratio at 0 V bias is estimated to be 7000, 300, and
2 under the illumination of UV, vis, and NIR lights, respectively
(see Table S1, Supporting Information for details) and is con-
sistent with photocurrent. The on/off photocurrent switching
cycles were also recorded (Figure S7, Supporting Information)
to ensure the consistency of the hybrid heterojunction at 0 V
bias. These results clearly indicate the self-powered operation of
heterojunction in a broad spectral range (360–980 nm). The bias
dependence of on/off ratio for three presented wavelengths indi-
cates a clear difference up to 1.4 V. The on/off ratio in UV and
visible light exhibits nearly constant value from 0 to 1.1 V attrib-
uted to the Poole–Frenkel conduction. The on/off ratio under
NIR excitation increases gradually up to 0.7 V and reaches a
constant maximum value in between 0.7 and 1.1 V due to the
gradual release of charge carriers from trap states. However,
beyond 1.1 V, for all illuminations of light on/off ratio reduces
sharply, which is consistent with the occupation of trap states
in region A of Figure 3d. The on/off ratio maintains a nearly
constant value after 1.4 V, which is independent of light illumi-
nation is attributed to saturation of trap states as predicted in
region B of Figure 3d. The on/off ratio obtained with the hybrid
heterojunction is promising as compared to already reported
photodetectors based on carbon nanostructures. Table S2
(Supporting Information) lists the on/off ratios and operating
voltages of reported photodetectors, which clearly shows the
superior performance of the hybrid p–n heterojunction.
The photoresponse of the heterojunction is investigated by
illuminating monochromatic light from 360 to 980 nm and
corresponding photodetector performance parameters were
JPh
estimated. The spectral responsivity Rλ is defined as R λ = ,
Plight
IPh
where JPh = is the photocurrent density; IPh, Piight,  and A,
A
respectively, are the photocurrent, input light intensity, and
active area of the device.[32,33] The spectral responsivity exhibits
a consistent photoresponse over a wide spectral range from
360 to 980 nm as shown in Figure 4c. The responsivity reveals
a maximum value of 266 mA W−1 in UV region, a minimum
value of 17 mA W−1 in NIR region and a moderate value of
73 mA W−1 in visible region (565 nm). The responsivity exhibits
the highest value in the UV regime and almost constant value
over visible to NIR shown. Such broadband response with self-
powered operation has not been achieved earlier with graphene
or graphene oxide-based photodetectors (see Table S3, Sup-
porting Information).[8,19,24,34] The detectivity (D) of a photo­
Rλ
detector is defined as D = where q and Jd are the elec-
2qJ d
tronic charge and dark current density, respectively.[35,36] The
detectivity of the device has been found to be 2.62 × 1011 Jones
(Figure 4c), which is comparable to commercially available

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Figure 5.  Photocurrent as a function of optical intensity under a) UV and b) Visible illumination in forward bias. Schematic illustration of the energy
band diagram of GaN/rGO:Ag NP heterojunction in c) dark and d) light illumination.

Si-based PDs. Therefore, responsivity and detectivity clearly
demonstrate the high performance of hybrid p–n heterojunc-
tion-based self-powered photodetector. The response time is
also an important parameter to evaluate the performance of
photodetector. The reliability of photoswitching is established
by performing on/off switching with UV and visible lights as
presented in Figure 4d. In each cycle the rise, saturation and
fall of the photocurrent is clearly professed. The time required
to reach 10% to 90% of photocurrent is called rise time and
vice versa for fall time. The rise time (tr) and fall time (tf) is
estimated to be 0.68 and 0.70 s under UV excitation and 0.68
and 1.07 s under visible excitation, respectively, as shown in
Figure S8a,b (Supporting Information). The asymmetric char-
acteristics in visible light on/off switching is attributed to the
shorter rise time as compared to fall time.[37]
The photocurrent (IPh) of a photodetector increases linearly
with increasing optical intensity(P), following a power law,
IPh ∝ Pα where α is a power exponent. Figure 5a,b exhibits the
variation of photocurrent with respect to incident UV and vis-
ible light intensity, respectively, for different forward bias from 1
to 4 V. The photocurrent obeys the power law and the estimated
α value varies from 0.71 to 0.54 and 0.93 to 0.37 for 1 to 4 V
bias under the illumination of UV and visible light, respec-
tively. The power exponent changes from liner to sublinear as
a function of voltage, which is independent of incident light as
depicted in Figure S9 (Supporting Information). The variation
of power law dependency suggests a complex carrier recombi-
nation process through trap states. The sublinear response at
higher biases is attributed to modulation of p–n heterojunction
conductivity and saturation of trap states. Similar behavior in
photoresponse has been observed for graphene–Si heterojunc-
tion-based photodetectors.[34] However, the change to sublinear
response is more rapid in case of visible light as compared to
UV light and is ascribed to the high density of trap states in
rGO and highly crystalline GaN.[37] Importantly, over the entire
experimental range of wavelengths, the heterojunction revealed
self-powered nature and linearity in which is the outstanding
feature of the photodetector. We have performed a literature
survey on the performance parameters of photodetectors based
on carbon nanostructures and displayed in Table S3 (Supporting
Information). The table clearly reveals the high performance of
hybrid heterojunction detector fabricated in this study.
In order to understand the underlying mechanism of the
high performance in self-powered broadband photodetectors,

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the energy band diagram is constructed and illustrated in
Figure 5c. Using absorption spectroscopy, the bandgap of rGO
is measured to be 0.42 eV, which is consistent with XPS meas-
urements. The bandgap of rGO depends on the ratio between
oxygen and carbon atoms (O/C ratio). The lower bandgaps of
rGO are attributed to the optimized thermal reduction process
with Ag NP and similar results have been reported.[27,38] On
the basis of reported data, the work function of rGO (4.66 eV),
electron affinity, and bandgap energy of GaN (4.1 and 3.4 eV,
respectively) have been considered in Figure 5c,d. The interface
between rGO and GaN hybrid heterojunction generates a built-
in electric field due to the band bending. The magnitude of the
built-in electric field is associated with the difference in Fermi
levels of rGO and GaN. The built-in electric field allows the flow
of charge carriers in one direction and results in rectification
characteristics of the device. When the heterojunction is illu-
minated with light, under the influence of the built-in electric
field, the electron and hole pairs are separated easily, thereby
generating photocurrent even in the absence of external bias
(Figure 5d). Therefore, heterojunction exhibited self-powered
nature under light illumination. The broad spectral response
from UV to NIR region is another important feature of the
heterojunction. The low bandgap of rGO enables the photo­­­­­
response in NIR and visible regions, whereas GaN facilities
the photoresponse in the UV region. The high transparency
of Au nanowire network allows ample light to reach rGO thin
film, which allows UV light to reach GaN surface. However, the
interface in between the heterojunction witnesses the interac-
tion of NIR, visible, and UV lights and promotes the separation
of electron–hole pairs. In addition, the transparent seamlessly
interconnected Au nanowire network efficiently accumulates
the charge carrier before recombination. It is important to
note that Ag NPs have been found to exhibit a direct impres-
sion on the photocurrent of the heterojunction as presented in
Figure S10 (Supporting Information). The photocurrent has
been found to increase with the addition of Ag NPs to rGO.
The increased photoresponse in devices with rGO: Ag NP com-
posite is attributed to the surface plasmon resonance caused by
Ag NPs providing localized electric fields for efficient transport
of photogenerated charge carriers. Altogether, the choice of the
active materials and design of the hybrid heterojunction along
with Au nanowire network endows broadband photoresponse.
All of the aforementioned features work synergistically for real-
izing high-performance self-powered broadband photodetectors.
As a consequence, our photodetector performed far superior to
most of the previously reported photodetectors based on carbon
nanomaterials (see Table S3 in the Supporting Information).
3. Conclusion
In summary, broadband photodetection from ultraviolet to
near infrared spectrum with self-powered operation has been
demonstrated in GaN/rGO: Ag NP vertical heterojunction with
transparent metal nanowire electrode. The developed built-in
electric field across the heterojunction is strong enough to drive
the photogenerated carriers even in the absence of external
bias. Incorporation of AgNPs into the reduced graphene oxide
improved the photoresponse characteristics of the device by
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enhancing photoabsorption due to surface plasmon resonance
effect. Transparent metal nanowire electrode and reduced
graphene oxide film ensure minimum attenuation of incoming
illumination resulting in high responsivity and rapid response.
Metal nanowire electrode is capable of rapid collection of
charge carriers, which also assists in achieving a fast response.
Further, modifications in device structure to neutralize the het-
erointerface states can further improve the switching response.
This novel device scheme is promising for large-scale produc-
tion of self-sustained low power optoelectronics.
4. Experimental Section
Preparation of GO–Ag NP Composite: Graphene oxide (GO) dispersed
in water with 2 mg mL-1 concentration was purchased from Sigma
Aldrich. Ag–NPs were synthesized by photoinduced chemical reduction
of silver nitrate in aqueous monoethanolamine solution containing
sodium dodecylsulfate as a surfactant (Figure S11, Supporting
Information).[39] Reaction temperature was fixed at 60 °C and followed by
ripening at room temperature for 2 h. Photoirradiation was performed
using a Philips 23 Watt CFL and reaction parameters such as precursor
concentration, duration of photo irradiation, surfactant concentration
and concentration of reducing agent were optimized to achieve desired
size distribution of Ag NPs. For GO:Ag NP composite, optimized 8 wt%
Ag–NP was added ex situ to GO suspension and stirred overnight for
uniform distribution at room temperature. Throughout the process
deionized (DI) water was used from a Milli-Q water purification system.
Fabrication of GaN/rGO-Based Photodetector: The GO:Ag NP
dispersion with a concentration of 0.1 mg mL-1 (kept at room
temperature) was used for spray coating uniformly on GaN substrate
and N2 gas pressure was fixed at 15 psi. The spray coated samples were
then annealed in N2 atmosphere at 150 °C for 120 min to ensure thermal
reduction process.[27] After reducing the GO to rGO, crackle lithography
was performed to fabricate Au nanowire network and employed a
transparent top electrode. The steps involved in crackle lithography were
replicated as reported previously.[40] During this process, spin coating
(Model: Apex SPINNXG 02) was used for fabricating crackle template.
The thermal evaporation of Au was performed by means of a Hind high
vacuum coating system.
Characterization Techniques: All the optimized devices at various
stages were characterized for their morphology (TEM, FE-SEM, AFM),
structures (SAED, XRD, Raman), and electronic states (XPS). TEM
and SAED patterns were measured using an ultrahigh-resolution field
emission gun transmission electron microscope (JEOL, JEM 2100 F).
Transmission measurements were performed using the Varian Cary
5000 UV−Vis−NIR spectrophotometer. XPS was performed using a PHI
5000 Versa Probe II (ULVAC-PHI, Inc., Japan) system with microfocused
(100 µm, 25 W, 15 kV) monochromatic Al Kα source (hν = 1486.6 eV),
a hemispherical analyzer and a multichannel detector. X-ray diffraction
measurement was carried out using a Panalytical X-ray diffractometer
(PW 3040/60) with Cu–Ka source with generator voltage of 40 kV and
generator current of 40 mA with a scanning rate of 3° min-1 at a step
size of 0.01°. Raman spectra were recorded in a Horiba T64000 Raman
spectrometer with 532 nm laser excitation at 2 mW cm-2 intensity.
The electrical characterization was performed using a Keithley 4200A
Parameter Analyzer (CSIR-CSIO, Chandigarh), Keithley 6487 Source-
Measuring Unit (IACS-Kolkata) in voltage sweeping mode and constant
bias mode. I–V characteristics were executed by sweeping voltage from
-5 V to 5 V with 0.01 V step size.
Supporting Information
Supporting Information is available from the Wiley Online Library or
from the author.
© 2019 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
www.advancedsciencenews.com
Acknowledgements
The authors thank Director IACS-Kolkata and Director CSIR-CSIO,
Chandigarh for their encouragement and support. K.S. and M.H.
acknowledge IACS, Kolkata for their fellowship. K.D.M.R. acknowledge
the support by SERB project “ECR/2017/003264” and Technical
Research Centre, IACS, Kolkata. P.K. acknowledges SERB Project
“ECR/2018/001491” and INSPIRE Faculty “IFA13-PH-51” for financial
support. P.D. acknowledges the financial support for Parameter Analyzer
from CSIR.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Keywords
Au nanowire network, GaN, reduced graphene oxide, self-powered
photodetectors
Received: May 27, 2019
Revised: July 7, 2019
Published online:
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