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.
Science Bulletin
Experimental study