title: Pronounced Photovoltaic Response from Multilayered Transition-Metal Dichalcogenides PN-Junctions.
abstract: Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are layered semiconductors with indirect band gaps comparable to Si. These compounds can be grown in large area, while their gap(s) can be tuned by changing their chemical composition or by applying a gate voltage. The experimental evidence collected so far points toward a strong interaction with light, which contrasts with the small photovoltaic efficiencies η ≤ 1% extracted from bulk crystals or exfoliated monolayers. Here, we evaluate the potential of these compounds by studying the photovoltaic response of electrostatically generated PN-junctions composed of approximately 10 atomic layers of MoSe2 stacked onto the dielectric h-BN. In addition to ideal diode-like response, we find that these junctions can yield, under AM-1.5 illumination, photovoltaic efficiencies η exceeding 14%, with fill factors of ~70%. Given the available strategies for increasing η such as gap tuning, improving the quality of the electrical contacts, or the fabrication of tandem cells, our study suggests a remarkable potential for photovoltaic applications based on TMDs.
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.|Department of Physics, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306, United States.
authors.forename: Shahriar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Memaran
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.
authors.forename: Nihar R
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Pradhan
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.|Department of Physics, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306, United States.
authors.forename: Zhengguang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.|Department of Physics, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306, United States.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rhodes
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.|Department of Physics, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306, United States.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ludwig
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.|Department of Physics, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306, United States.
authors.forename: Qiong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Florida State University , Tallahassee, Florida 32306-4390, United States.
authors.forename: Omotola
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ogunsolu
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Rice University , Houston, Texas 77005-1892, United States.
authors.forename: Pulickel M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Ajayan
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.
authors.forename: Dmitry
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Smirnov
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física Teórica de la Materia Condensada and Condensed Matter Physics Center (IFIMAC), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid , E-28049 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Antonio I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Fernández-Domínguez
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física Teórica de la Materia Condensada and Condensed Matter Physics Center (IFIMAC), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid , E-28049 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Francisco J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: García-Vidal
authors.affiliation: National High Magnetic Field Lab, Florida State University , 1800 E. Paul Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, Florida 32310, United States.
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Balicas
keywords: PN-junctions; Transition metal dichalcogenides; fill factor; molybdenum diselenide; photovoltaic effect