Printed GaAs Microstructures based Flexible High-Performance Broadband Photodetectors

Nano/microstructures of compound semiconductors like gallium arsenide (GaAs) have enormous potential for advanced photonic technologies. However, their intimate integration on flexible substrates is challenging and as a result it is difficult to use them in applications such as wearables, soft robotics etc. This video shows the high-performance flexible broadband photodetectors (PDs) based on direct roll transfer printed arrays of well-defined and laterally aligned semi-insulating (undoped) and doped GaAs microstructures. The array of printed flexible PDs is integrated on the thumb of robotic hand to demonstrate a new type of electronic skin (e-Skin) which can detect under ultraviolet to near-infrared illumination with an excellent performance, including ultra fast response (2.5 ms) and recovery (8 ms) times, high responsivity (more than 10^4 AW-1), detectivity (more than 10^14 jones), external quantum efficiency (more than 10^6), and photoconductive gain (more than 10^4) at low operating voltage of 1