Improvement in thermal degradation of ZnO photodetector by embedding silver oxide nanoparticles

The degraded performance of annealed ZnO-based photodetector can be improved by embedding an Ag interlayer. The Ag interlay converted to Ag₂O during ZnO deposition. After Ag₂O nanoparticles formed, the interface between ZnO and Ag₂O produced band-bending to redistribute charges and increase the Schottky barrier between the electrical contact and ZnO. The excess Ag interlayer created lattice defects, causing the dark current to increase slightly. The increasing visible PL intensity of annealed ZnO, with the increasing Ag interlayer, clarified the transfer of the photo-generated electron.