Observation of a Large Photo-response in a Single Nanowire (Diameter ~30 nm) of Charge Transfer Complex Cu:TCNQ

Abstract

We report for the first time large photoresponse in a single NW of the charge transfer complex Cu:TCNQ. We fabricate a metal-semiconductor-metal device with a single NW and focus ion beam deposited Pt. We observe large photocurrent even at zero bias. The spectral dependence of the photoresponse follows the main absorption at ~ 405 nm which has the primarily responsible for photogenerated carriers. We have quantitatively analyzed the bias dependent photocurrent by a model of two back to back Schottky diodes connected by a series resistance. The observation shows that the large photoresponse of the device primarily occurs due to the reduction of the barrier at the contact regions due to illumination along with the photoconductive contribution. There is also a bias driven reduction of the nanowire resistance that is a unique feature for the material.