Tunable and Energetically Robust PbS Nanoplatelets for Optoelectronic Applications

PbS nanoplatelets (NPLs) are proposed as robust materials for novel optoelectronic devices. Compared to quantum dot assemblies, ab initio simulations are employed to show that such pseudo-two-dimensional systems may provide stronger absorption and higher carrier mobility due to the distinct wave function distributions, large electronic couplings, and small hopping barriers. More importantly, both energetic and spatial traps are absent in conditions far from charge balance, indicating an extraordinary robustness against offstoichiometry as a result of surface homogeneity and sufficient cross-linking. Based on our findings, we present several types of optoelectronic device architectures spanning photovoltaics and photodetectors that could take advantage of the superior properties found in NPLs.