Two-Dimensional Materials for Advanced Photodetectors: A Growing Family of Materials with Unique Advantages

Two-dimensional materials (2DMs) are a class of materials composed of layers where the interactions between atoms in different layers are driven by van der Waals forces rather than chemical bonds (1). Recently, there has been a rapid expansion in the number of 2DMs, resulting in a diverse range of materials including semi-metal 2DMs, semiconductor 2DMs, and insulator 2DMs (2)(3)(4). These materials have demonstrated unique advantages for the construction of photodetectors (PDs) (5)(6)(7), which are essential components in various optoelectronic systems such as optical communications, optical imaging, and optical sensing.