Graphene gives photodetector fuller spectrum of light sensing

Developed at UCLA’s Samueli School of Engineering, the device is said also to have superior sensing and imaging capabilities.

The versatility and usefulness of photodetectors depends largely on their operating speed, their sensitivity to lower levels of light, and how much of the spectrum they can sense. Typically, when engineers have improved a photodetector's capabilities in any one of those areas, at least one of the two other capabilities is diminished.

The photodetector designed by the UCLA team is claimed to have major improvements in all three areas as it operates across a broad range of light, processes images more quickly, and is more sensitive to low levels of light than current technology.

"Our photodetector could extend the scope and potential uses of photodetectors in imaging and sensing systems," said Mona Jarrahi, a professor of electrical and computer engineering, who led the study. "It could dramatically improve thermal imaging in night vision or in medical diagnosis applications where subtle differences in temperatures can give doctors a lot of information on their patients. It could also be used in environmental sensing technologies to more accurately identify the concentration of pollutants."