Improvement of sensitivity of graphene photodetector by creating bandgap structure

Graphene has aroused large interest in optoelectronic applications because of its broad band absorption and ultrahigh electron mobility. However, the low absorption of 2.3% seriously limits its photoresponsivity and restricts the relevant applications. In this paper, a method to enhance the sensitivity of graphene photodetector is demonstrated by introducing electron trapping centers and creating a bandgap structure in graphene. The carrier lifetime obviously increases, and more carriers are collected by the electrodes. Compared with intrinsic graphene detector, the defective graphene photodetector possesses high photocurrent and low-driving-voltage, which gives rise to great potential applications in photodetector area.