A comparative study of Nanowire-based InP and Planar ITO/InP Photodetectors

Photodetectors are a kind of semiconductor devices that convert incoming light to an electrical signal. Photodetectors have different applications in sensors and fiber optic communication systems, and medical diagnosis etc. In this project Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy is used to investigate a new version of photodiodes for near-infrared radiation that is based on self-assembled semiconductor nanowires (NWs) which are grown directly on the substrate without any epi-layer. The spectrally resolved photocurrent (at different applied biases) and IV curves (in darkness and illumination) for different temperatures have been studied, respectively. The thesis work also includes a comparison to a planar photodetector based on Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) deposited directly on an InP substrate.