In this study, copper oxide thin films were fabricated by facing target sputtering system and their structural, optical, and electrical properties were investigated. Crystal phase of samples were changed by variation of oxygen flow rate from Cu to Cu₂O and CuO. Compared to Cu metal film, electrical properties of Cu₂O and CuO were relatively degraded, however, asfabricated Cu₂O and CuO indicated still low resistivity (~10^-3 Ω·cm) and high carrier concentration (~10¹⁹ cm^-3). From the results, it is thought that the copper oxide thin films Cu₂O fabricated under optimal conditions can be applied to various optoelectronic devices including ultraviolet photodetector.

We investigated the potential of IO:H thin films and hydrogen doping to improve current density and fill factor for enhancing the performance of silicon heterojunction solar cells. We revealed that a transmittance of 86.7% and work function of 5.4 eV could be achieved by injecting 3 sccm of hydrogen gas. The lattice constant of 1.037 nm at the AB site indicates an anion antibonding tendency, and the work function increases as the Fermi level shifts to the valence band. Based on these findings, we fabricated a silicon heterojunction solar cell and achieved an efficiency of 18.53%, while computer simulation confirmed a conversion efficiency of 24.65%, an open-circuit voltage of 724 mV, and a fill factor of 82.72% at a current density of 41.15 mA/㎠.

Gallium Oxide (Ga₂O₃) is preferred as a material for next generation power semiconductors. The Ga₂O₃ should solve the disadvantages of low thermal resistance characteristics and difficulty in forming an inversion layer through p-type ion implantation. However, Ga₂O₃ is difficult to inject p-type ions, so it is being studied in a heterojunction structure using p-type oxides, such as NiO, SnO, and Cu₂O. Research the lateral-type FET structure of NiO/Ga₂O₃ heterojunction under the Gate contact using the Sentaurus TCAD simulation. At this time, the VG-ID and VD-ID curves were identified by the thickness of the Epi-region (channel) and the doping concentration of NiO of 1 × 10¹⁷ to 1 × 10¹⁹ cm^-3. The increase in Epi region thickness has a lower threshold voltage from -4.4 V to -9.3 V at I_D = 1 × 10^-8 mA/mm, as current does not flow only when the depletion of the PN junction extends to the Epi/Sub interface. As an increase of NiO doping concentration, increases the depletion area in Ga₂O₃ region and a high electric field distribution on PN junction, and thus the breakdown voltage increases from 512 V to 636 V at I_D =1 × 10^-3 A/mm.

Underwater wireless communication is a challenging issue for realizing the smart aqua-farm and various marine activities for exploring the ocean and environmental monitoring. In comparison to acoustic and radio frequency technologies, the visible light communication is the most promising method to transmit data with a higher speed in complex underwater environments. To send data at a speedier rate, high-performance photodetectors are essentially required to receive blue and/or cyan-blue light that are transmitted from the light sources in a light-fidelity (Li-Fi) system. Here, we fabricated high-performance organic phototransistors (OPTs) based on P-type donor polymer (PTO2) and N-type acceptor small molecule (IT-4F) blend semiconductors. Bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) PTO2:IT-4F photo-active layer has a broad absorption spectrum in the range of 450~550 nm wavelength. Solution-processed OPTs showed a high photo-responsivity >1,000 mA/W, a large photo-sensitivity >10³, a fast response time, and reproducible light-On/Off switching characteristics even under a weak incident light. BHJ organic semiconductors absorbed photons and generated excitons, and efficiently dissociated to electron and hole carriers at the donor-acceptor interface. Printed and flexible OPTs can be widely used as Li-Fi receivers and image sensors for underwater communication and underwater internet of things (UIoTs).

A hybrid supercapacitor is a promising energy storage device in view of its excellent capacitive performance. Commercial three-dimensional foam nickel (Ni) can be used as an ideal framework due to an interconnected network structure. However, its application as an electrode material for supercapacitors is limited due to its low specific capacity. Herein, we report a successful growth of MnO₂ on the surface of graphene by a one-step hydrothermal method; thus, forming a three-dimensional MnO₂-graphene-Ni hybrid foam. Our results show that the mixed structure of MnO₂ with nanoflowers and nanorods grown on the graphene/Ni foam as a hybrid electrode delivers the maximum specific capacitance of 193 F·g^-1 at a current density 0.1 A·g^-1. More importantly, the hybrid electrode retains 104% of its initial capacitance after 1,000 charge-discharge cycles at 1 A·g^-1; thus, showing the potential application as a stable supercapacitor electrode.

a-Si is commonly considered as a primary candidate for the formation of passivation layer in heterojunction (HIT) solar cells. However, there are some problems when using this material such as significant losses due to recombination and parasitic absorption. To reduce these problems, a wide bandgap material is needed. A wide bandgap has a positive influence on effective transmittance, reduction of the parasitic absorption, and prevention of unnecessary epitaxial growth. In this paper, the adoption of a-SiO_x:H as the intrinsic layer was discussed. To increase lifetime and conductivity, oxygen concentration control is crucial because it is correlated with the thickness, bonding defect, interface density (D_it), and band offset. A thick oxygenrich layer causes the lifetime and the implied open-circuit voltage to drop. Furthermore the thicker the layer gets, the more free hydrogen atoms are etched in thin films, which worsens the passivation quality and the efficiency of solar cells. Previous studies revealed that the lifetime and the implied voltage decreased when the a-SiOx thickness went beyond around 9 nm. In addition to this, oxygen acted as a defect in the intrinsic layer. The D_it increased up to an oxygen rate on the order of 8%. Beyond 8%, the D_it was constant. By controlling the oxygen concentration properly and achieving a thin layer, high-efficiency HIT solar cells can be fabricated.

As packaging processes for atomic gyroscope vapor cells, the glass tube tip-off process, anodic bonding, and paste sealing have been widely studied. However, there are stability issues in the alkali metal which are caused by impurity elements and leakage during high-temperature processes. In this study, we investigated the applicability of a vapor cell low-temperature packaging process by depositing Au on a Pyrex cell in addition to forming an Au-Sn thin film on a cap to cover the cell, followed by laser irradiation of the Au/Au-Sn interface. The mechanism of the thin film bonding was evaluated by XRD, while the packaging reliability of an Ne gas-filled vapor cell was characterized by variation of plasma discharge behavior with time. Furthermore, we confirmed that the Rb alkaline metal inside the vapor cell showed no color change, indicating no oxidation occurred during the process.

Ga₂O₃/n-type 4H-SiC heterojunction diodes were fabricated by RF magnetron sputtering. The optical properties of Ga₂O₃ and electrical properties of diodes were investigated. I-V characteristics were compared with simulation data from the Atlas software. The band gap of Ga₂O₃ was changed from 5.01 eV to 4.88 eV through oxygen annealing. The doping concentration of Ga₂O₃ was extracted from C-V characteristics. The annealed oxygen exhibited twice higher doping concentration. The annealed diodes showed improved turn-on voltage (0.99 V) and lower leakage current (3 pA). Furthermore, the oxygen-annealed diodes exhibited a temperature cross-point when temperature increased, and its ideality factor was lower than that of as-grown diodes.

In this work, we investigate the effects of lithium doping on the electric performance of solution-processed n-type zinc tin oxide (ZTO)/p-type silicon carbide (SiC) heterojunction diode structures. The proper amount of lithium doping not only affects the carrier concentration and interface quality but also influences the temperature sensitivity of the series resistance and activation energy. We confirmed that the device characteristics vary with lithium doping at concentrations of 0, 10, and 20 wt%. In particular, the highest rectification ratio of 1.89×107 and the lowest trap density of 4.829×1,022 cm^-2 were observed at 20 wt% of lithium doping. Devices at this doping level showed the best characteristics. As the temperature was increased, the series resistance value decreased. Additionally, the activation energy was observed to change with respect to the component acting on the trap. We have demonstrated that lithium doping is an effective way to obtain a higher performance ZTO-based diode.

Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon (a-Si:H) is used as an emitter layer in HIT (heterojunction with Intrinsic Thin layer) solar cells. Its low band gap and low optical properties (low transmittance and high absorption) cause parasitic absorption on the front side of a solar cell that significantly reduces the solar cell blue response. To overcome this, research on CSC (carrier Selective Contacts) is being actively carried out to reduce carrier recombination and improve carrier transportation as a means to approach the theoretical efficiency of silicon solar cells. Among CSC materials, molybdenum oxide (MoO_x) is most commonly used for the hole transport layer (HTL) of a solar cell due to its high work function and wide band gap. This paper analyzes the electrical and optical properties of MoO_x thin films for use in the HTL of HIT solar cells. The optical properties of MoO_x show better performance than a-Si:H and μc-SiO_x:H.

NiO serves as a window layer for Si photoelectric devices. Due to the wide energy bandgap of NiO, high optical transparency (over 80%) was achieved and applied for Si photoelectric devices. Due to the high the high mobility, the heterojunction device (Al/n-Si/SiO2/p-NiO/ITO) provide ultimately fast photoresponses of rising time of 38.33 μs and falling time of 39.25 μs, respectively. This functional NiO layer would provide benefits for high-performing photoelectric devices, including photodetectors and solar cells.

In this paper, the efficiency improvement of the heterojunction with intrinsic thin layer (HIT) solar cells is obtained by optimization process of p-type a-SiC:H as emitter. The optoelectronic of p-type a-SiC:H layers including the optical band-gap and conductivity under the methane gas content variation is conducted in detail. A significant increase in the Jsc by 1 mA/cm2 and Voc by 30 mV are attributed to enhanced photon-absorption due to broader band-gap of p-a-SiC:H and reduced band-offsets at p-side interface, respectively of HIT solar cells.

Highly optical transparent photoelectric devices were realized by using a transparent metal-oxide semiconductor heterojunction of p-type NiO and n-type ZnO. A functional template of ITO nanowires (NWs) was applied to this transparent heterojunction device to enlarge the light-reactive surface. The ITO NWs/n-ZnO/p-NiO heterojunction device provided a significant high rectification ratio of 275 with a considerably low reverse saturation current of 0.2 nA. The optical transparency was about 80% for visible wavelengths, however showed an excellent blocking UV light. The nanostructured transparent heterojunction devices were applied for UV photodetectors to show ultra fast photoresponses with a rise time of 8.3 mS and a fall time of 20 ms, respectively. We suggest this transparent and super-performing UV responser can practically applied in transparent electronics and smart window applications.

We investigated the effects of annealing on the electrical and thermal properties of ZTO/4H-SiC heterojunction diodes. A ZTO thin film layer was grown on p-type 4H-SiC substrate by using solution process. The ZTO/SiC heterojunction structures annealed at 500℃ show that Ion/Ioff increases from ~5.13×107 to ~1.11×109 owing to the increased electron concentration of ZTO layer as confirmed by capacitance-voltage characteristics. In addition, the electrical characterization of ZTO/SiC heterojunction has been carried out in the temperature range of 300∼500 K. When the measurement temperature increased from 300 K to 500 K, the reverse current variation of annealed device is higher than as-grown device, which is related to barrier height in the ZTO/SiC interface. It is shown that annealing process is possible to control the electrical characteristics of ZTO/SiC heterojunction diode.