Scientists make light work of semiconductor nanocomposite

A research team led by scientists at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has developed a revolutionary, light-activated semiconductor nanocomposite material that could find use in a variety of applications. Examples include microscopic actuators and grippers for surgical robots, light-powered micro-mirrors for optical telecommunications systems, and more efficient solar cells and photodetectors.

"This is a new area of science," said Balaji Panchapakesan, associate professor of mechanical engineering at WPI and lead author of a paper about the new material in Scientific Reports. "Very few materials are able to convert photons directly into mechanical motion. In this paper, we present the first semiconductor nanocomposite material known to do so. It is a fascinating material that is also distinguished by its high strength and its enhanced optical absorption when placed under mechanical stress."

"Tiny grippers and actuators made with this material could be used on Mars rovers to capture fine dust particles," he noted. "They could travel through the bloodstream on tiny robots to capture cancer cells or take minute tissue samples. The material could be used to make micro-actuators for rotating mirrors in optical telecommunications systems; they would operate strictly with light, and would require no other power source."

Like other semiconductor materials, molybdenum disulfide, the material described in the paper, is characterized by the way electrons are arranged and move within its atoms. In particular, electrons in semiconductors are able to move from a group of outer orbitals called the valence band to another group of orbitals known as the conduction band when adequately excited by an energy source, like an electromagnetic field or the photons in a beam of light. Crossing this ‘band gap’ causes the electrons to create a flow of electricity, which is the principal that makes computer chips and solar cells possible.

When the negatively-charged electrons move between orbitals, they leave behind positively-charged voids known as holes. A pair made up of a bound electron and an electron hole is called an exciton.

In their experiments, Panchapakesan and his team observed that the atomic orbitals of the molybdenum and sulfur atoms in molybdenum disulfide are arranged in a unique way that permits excitons within the conduction band to interact with what are known as the p-orbitals of the sulfur atoms. This ‘exciton resonance’ contributes to the strong sigma bonds that give the two dimensional array of atoms making up molybdenum sulfide its extraordinary strength. The strength of this resonance is also responsible for a unique effect that generates heat within the material, and it is this heat that gives rise to the material's chromatic (light-induced) mechanical response.

To take advantage of this phenomenon, Panchapakesan's team created thin films made up of just one to three layers of molybdenum disulfide encased in layers of a rubber-like polymer. They exposed these nanocomposites to various wavelengths of light and found that the heat generated as a result of the exciton resonance caused the polymer to expand and contract, depending on the precise wavelength of the light. Panchapakesan's team harnessed this photo-mechanical response to fabricate tiny grippers that open and close in response to light pulses. The grippers can capture plastic beads the size of a single human cell.

In further testing, Panchapakesan and his team discovered another unique behavior of the molybdenum disulfide composite that could lead to a different set of applications. Employing what is known as strain engineering, they stretched the material and discovered that this mechanical stress increased its ability to absorb light.

"This is something that cannot be done with conventional thin-film semiconductors," Panchapakesan said, "because when you stretch them, they will prematurely break. But with its unique material strength, molybdenum disulfide can be stretched. And its increased optical absorption under strain makes it a good candidate for more efficient solar cells, photodetectors, and detectors for thermal and infrared cameras. "

"The exciton resonance, photomechanical response, and increased optical absorption under strain make this an extraordinary material and an intriguing subject for further investigation," he added.

This story is adapted from material from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier. Link to original source.