Scientists developed room-temperature, zero-power infrared sensor for next-generation night vision
Wafer-scale single-crystal film and clever device design enable low-cost, uncooled infrared imaging
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The photograph shows a one-inch, single-crystal lead sulfide (PbS) film wafer (left). The right panel demonstrates a clear infrared image of a university emblem and Chinese characters, captured at room temperature with the new detector without any cooling or external power.
view moreCredit: ©Science China Press
Infrared (IR) detection is crucial for night vision, medical imaging, and autonomous vehicles. However, high-performance IR sensors typically require bulky, energy-intensive cooling systems to operate, limiting their widespread use and increasing costs.
A team of scientists from Wuhan University and collaborating institutions has now developed a breakthrough IR sensor that works efficiently at room temperature and without any external power supply. Their study, published in Science Bulletin, combines two key innovations.
First, the team used chemical vapor deposition to grow wafer-scale, single-crystal films of lead sulfide (PbS) on a strontium titanate substrate. This process produces a high-quality material with minimal defects, which is essential for sensitive light detection.
Second, they designed a novel asymmetric electrode structure for the device: one side uses a chromium-gold (Cr/Au) contact, while the other uses a transparent indium zinc oxide (IZO) electrode. This configuration creates a built-in electric field at the PbS/IZO interface. When IR light hits the device, this field efficiently separates the generated electrical charges, producing a strong signal without needing an external battery.
The resulting detector shows excellent performance: a fast response time below one millisecond, high sensitivity at near-infrared wavelengths, and the ability to generate clear images at room temperature. The team successfully demonstrated this by imaging a patterned mask using only the ambient temperature of the lab.
“This work overcomes the traditional cooling barrier for lead-based infrared detectors,”said corresponding author Yao Wen. “By integrating high-quality material growth with smart device engineering, we provide a scalable path toward low-cost, uncooled infrared imaging systems for future applications.”
This advancement could significantly reduce the size, cost, and power consumption of IR cameras, potentially integrating them into everyday consumer electronics, advanced driver-assistance systems, and portable medical devices.
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