SnS₂ thin film with in situ and controllable Sb doping via atomic layer deposition for optoelectronic applications

SnS₂ stands out as a highly promising 2D material with significant potential for applications in the field of electronics and photovoltaic technologies. Numerous attempts have been undertaken to modulate the physical properties of SnS₂ by doping with various metal ions. Here, a series of Sb-doped SnS₂ is deposited via atomic layer deposition (ALD) super-cycle process and compared its crystallinity, composition, and optical properties to those of pristine SnS₂. It is found that the increase in the concentration of Sb is accompanied by a gradual reduction in the Sn and S binding energies. The work function is increased upon Sb doping from 4.32 eV (SnS₂) to 4.75 eV (Sb-doped SnS₂ with 9:1 ratio). When integrated into photodetectors, the Sb-doped SnS₂ showed improved performance, demonstrating increased peak photoresponsivity values from 19.5 to 27.8 A W⁻¹ at 405 nm, accompanied by an improvement in response speed. These results offer valuable insights into next-generation optoelectronic applications based on SnS₂.