Electrolytic phototransistor based on graphene-MoS₂ van der Waals p-n heterojunction with tunable photoresponse

Van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures obtained by stacking 2D materials offer a promising route for next generation devices by combining different unique properties in completely new artificial materials. In particular, the vdW heterostructures combine high mobility and optical properties that can be exploited for optoelectronic devices. Since the p-n junction is one of the most fundamental units of optoelectronics, we propose an approach for its fabrication based on the intrinsic n doped MoS₂ and the p doped bilayer graphene hybrid interfaces. We demonstrate the control of the photoconduction properties using electrolytic gating which ensures a low bias operation. We show that by finely choosing the doping value of each layer, the photoconductive properties of the hybrid system can be engineered to achieve magnitude and sign control of the photocurrent. Finally, we provide a simple phase diagram relating the photoconductive behavior with the chosen doping, which we believe can be very useful for the future design of the van der Waals based photodetectors.