Progress in piezo-phototronic effect enhanced photodetectors

Wurtzite structured materials such as InN, CaN, ZnO, and CdSe simultaneously possess piezoelectric, semiconducting, and photoexcitation properties. The piezo-phototronic effect utilizes the piezo-polarization charges induced in the vicinity of the interface/junction to regulate the energy band diagrams and modulate charge carriers in the optoelectronic processes, such as transport, generation, recombination, and separation. This article reviews recent progress in piezo-phototronic effect enhanced photodetectors, starting from the fundamental physics, following the development from a single nanowire device to a large-scale photodetector array for illumination imaging. The piezo-phototronic effect provides a promising approach to improve the performance of the wurtzite structured material-based photodetectors. It may have potential applications in optical communication, optoelectronic devices, and multifunctional computing systems.