High-Gain, Broadband Ultraviolet Photodetection with a Mixed-Dimensional van der Waals Heterostructure

Mixed-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures integrating zero-dimensional quantum dots (QDs) with two-dimensional semiconductors provide a promising platform for broadband photodetection. Here we report a ZrS2 QDs/MoS2 hybrid photodetector exhibiting strong UV–visible photoresponse with high gain and specific detectivity. The device benefits from type-II band alignment and spectral overlap between ZrS2 emission and MoS2 absorption, and efficient energy transfer and charge separation are achieved. The device delivers a responsivity of 4.15 × 103 A/W at 365 nm and a specific detectivity of 8.71 × 1013 Jones, nearly an order of magnitude higher than that of pristine MoS2 devices. This work provides insight into optoelectronic coupling in 0D/2D heterostructures and offers a scalable strategy for UV photodetectors and optoelectronic sensing.