Triple layer heterojunction Ga₂O₃/NiO/SiC for ultrafast, high-response ultraviolet image sensing

Ultraviolet (UV) image sensing is of considerable scientific and engineering interest due to its unique advantages of visible blindness and irradiation resistance. However, slow response speed and poor responsivity still restrict the large-scale application of this sensing technique. Herein, a photovoltaic-type UV image sensor based on the lateral photovoltaic effect (LPE) has been designed using a triple layer Ga2O3/NiO/SiC heterojunction. The device demonstrates an unprecedented position sensitivity (750.86 mV/mm), a large voltage on/off ratio (Vlight/Vdark > 102), and an ultrafast response speed (0.59 μs) under UV irradiation. Thanks to its outstanding LPE characteristics, the appliance also exhibits an impressive performance in UV image sensing, even in environment reliability testing. Given these remarkable features of the sensor, this work not only proposes a strategy to improve the performance of UV detectors, but also provides a practical solution for UV image sensing applications.