Pushing the Limits of Photoconductivity via Hot Electrons in Deep Trap States in Plasmonic Architectures

Although extensive research on the mechanisms of photoconductivity enhancement in plasmonic Schottky structures has been conducted, the photoconductive interplay between hot electrons and trapping states remains elusive. In this study, we explored the photoconductive relationship between plasmonic hot-carriers and defect sites present in plasmonic architectures consisting of N-face n-GaN and Au nanoprisms. Our experimental results clearly verified that the plasmonic hot-electrons generated by interband transitions preferentially occupied deep trap levels in n-GaN, thereby considerably enhancing the photoconductivity through the combination of photogating and photovoltaic effects. Our quantitative evaluation demonstrated that a mere 63% increase in hot-electron trapping leads to a 1.7-fold increased photocurrent under localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) excitation compared to the figure of photocurrent under non-LSPR stimulus. Our findings provide novel insights into the mechanisms of photoconductive enhancement for advanced plasmonic applications.