Broadband Phototransistors Enabled by Dual Transport Channels in Topological Insulator Bi <sub>2</sub> Te <sub>2</sub> Se
Mianzeng Zhong, Shuo Liu, Yali Yu, J. Wen, Xinyun Zhou, Le Yuan, Kaiyao Xin, Ruiying Ma, Qinglin Xia, Penghong Ci, Ziqi Zhou, Jun He, Zhongming Wei
Abstract
Topological insulators (TIs), characterized by insulating bulk states and metallic surface states hosting Dirac Fermions, exhibit remarkable nonlinear, optical, and optoelectronic properties. Owing to their narrow bandgaps and gapless surface conduction channels, TI-based phototransistors demonstrate high responsivity, low dark currents, and broadband spectral responses. However, the limited diversity of the reported TI materials has constrained their application in high-performance broadband photodetectors. Here, we report the growth of high-quality two-dimensional layered Bi 2 Te 2 Se via chemical vapor transport and systematically investigate its electronic and optoelectronic properties. Field-effect transistors (FETs) based on Bi 2 Te 2 Se show an impressive on/off current ratio of ∼10 3 and a carrier mobility of 20.9 cm 2 V –1 s –1 . Notably, the devices exhibit a dual-channel transport mechanism, which relies on the synergy between the topological surface states, providing high-mobility pathways for rapid response (∼1.3 μs), and the thermally activated bulk carriers, which can be effectively depleted by gating to suppress the dark current. Furthermore, Bi 2 Te 2 Se phototransistors exhibit broadband photodetection across the visible to infrared range (450–1550 nm), achieving a peak responsivity of 155 A/W and a specific detectivity of 2.1 × 10 10 Jones under 700 nm illumination. These results highlight the potential of layered Bi 2 Te 2 Se as a promising platform for next-generation broadband and high-speed optoelectronic devices.