Gate-tunable carbon nanotube-MoS2 heterojunction p-n diode

The p-n junction diode is the most ubiquitous and fundamental building block of modern electronics, with far-reaching applications including integrated circuits, detectors, photovoltaics, and lasers. With the recent discovery and study of atomically thin materials, opportunities exist for adding new functionality to the p-n junction diode. Here we demonstrate that a p-n heterojunction diode based on atomically thin MoS₂ and sorted semiconducting carbon nanotubes yields unprecedented gate tunability in both its electrical and optical properties, which is not observed in the case of bulk semiconductor devices. In addition to enabling advanced electronic and optoelectronic technologies, this p-n heterojunction diode provides new insight into charge transport and separation at atomically thin heterointerfaces.