Hot electrons in a nanowire hard X-ray detector

Zapf M, Ritzer M, Liborius L, Johannes A, Hafermann M, Schoenherr S, Segura-Ruiz J, Martinez-Criado G, Prost W, Ronning C (2020)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2020

Journal

Nature Communications Nature Publishing Group: Nature Communications

Book Volume: 11

Article Number: 4729

Journal Issue: 1

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-18384-x

Abstract

Nanowire chip-based electrical and optical devices such as biochemical sensors, physical detectors, or light emitters combine outstanding functionality with a small footprint, reducing expensive material and energy consumption. The core functionality of many nanowire-based devices is embedded in their p-n junctions. To fully unleash their potential, such nanowire-based devices require – besides a high performance – stability and reliability. Here, we report on an axial p-n junction GaAs nanowire X-ray detector that enables ultra-high spatial resolution (~200 nm) compared to micron scale conventional ones. In-operando X-ray analytical techniques based on a focused synchrotron X-ray nanobeam allow probing the internal electrical field and observing hot electron effects at the nanoscale. Finally, we study device stability and find a selective hot electron induced oxidization in the n-doped segment of the p-n junction. Our findings demonstrate capabilities and limitations of p-n junction nanowires, providing insight for further improvement and eventual integration into on-chip devices.

Involved external institutions

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena DE Germany (DE) Universität Duisburg-Essen (UDE) DE Germany (DE) European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) FR France (FR) Spanish National Research Council / Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) ES Spain (ES)

How to cite

APA:

Zapf, M., Ritzer, M., Liborius, L., Johannes, A., Hafermann, M., Schoenherr, S.,... Ronning, C. (2020). Hot electrons in a nanowire hard X-ray detector. Nature Communications, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18384-x

MLA:

Zapf, Maximilian, et al. "Hot electrons in a nanowire hard X-ray detector." Nature Communications 11.1 (2020).

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