| Date | 15th, Jul 2021 |
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image: Scientists from Japan and Taiwan designed a nanosheet material using iron and benzenehexathiol that made for a high-performance self-powered UV photodetector with a record current stability after 60 days of air exposure. view more
Credit: Hiroshi Nishihara from Tokyo University of Science
Converting light to electricity effectively has been one of the persistent goals of scientists in the field of optoelectronics. While improving the conversion efficiency is a challenge, several other requirements also need to be met. For instance, the material must conduct electricity well, have a short response time to changes in input (light intensity), and, most importantly, be stable under long-term exposure.
Lately, scientists have been fascinated with "coordination nanosheets" (CONASHs), that are organic-inorganic hybrid nanomaterials in which organic molecules are bonded to metal atoms in a 2D network. The interest in CONASHs stems mainly from their ability to absorb light at multiple wavelength ranges and convert them into electrons with greater efficiency than other types of nanosheets. This feat was observed in a CONASH comprising a zinc atom bonded with a porphyrin-dipyrrin molecule. Unfortunately, the CONASH quickly became corroded due to the low stability of organic molecules in liquid electrolytes (a medium commonly used for current conduction).
"The durability issue needs to be solved to realize the practical applications of CONASH-based photoelectric conversion systems," says Prof. Hiroshi Nishihara from Tokyo University of Science (TUS), Japan, who conducts research on CONASH and has been trying to solve the CONASH stability problem.
Now, in a recent
