Abstract
Near-infrared and short-wave infrared dual-band detection has emerged as a pivotal enabling technology in across diverse applications spanning material identification, biological diagnostics, and machine vision. Current dual-band device architectures based on vertically stacked photodetectors such as those employing two-dimensional materials or back-illuminated colloidal quantum dots remain constrained by limited large-area manufacturability and incompatibility with standard readout integrated circuits. Here, we report a top-illuminated p-i-n-i-p dual-band photodetector using two distinct sizes of solution-processed PbS colloidal quantum dots, which enables bias-switchable spectral response between near-infrared and short-wave infrared regimes. The device achieves a specific detectivity exceeding 1×1011 cm·Hz1/2·W−1 in both bands, with short-wave infrared crosstalk of 0.5% and near-infrared crosstalk of 7.7%. The successful fabrication of a monolithic integrated 128×128 dual-band focal plane array showcases a functional dual-band infrared imager. This work establishes a scalable and silicon-compatible platform toward high-performance, low-cost dual-band infrared imagers.
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Acknowledgements
Y.D. and K.B. contributed equally to this work. The authors acknowledge the financial support from the National Key Research and Development Program of China (grant no. 2021YFA1200700 (J.W.)), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 62025405 (J.W.), 62305065 (K.B.)), the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (grant no. 2151103500 (J.W.)), and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (grant no. 2024T170154 (K.B.)).
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J.W. supervised the overall research direction and project coordination. K.B. and J.W. jointly directed the research program. Y.D. and K.B. conceived the research concept and co-wrote the manuscript with contributions from all authors. K.B. and L.Y. performed the precision synthesis and bandgap engineering of PbS CQDs. Y.D., Q.Z. and Y.L. carried out device fabrication, optoelectronic characterization, and performance evaluation. X.Q., W.T., and Z.H. developed the custom 128×128 ROIC through full-custom design and silicon validation. Y.D. and H.W. implemented the CQDs-based FPA, achieving real-time infrared imaging through optimized pixel processing algorithms. K.B., S.H. and H.Y. performed absorption spectroscopy characterization of PbS CQDs. Y.C. and X.W. provided technical guidance on device fabrication and optoelectronic testing. Y.T. contributed essential synthetic protocols for monodisperse PbS CQDs synthesis. T.L., H.S., X.M. and Q.L. advised on device performance enhancement and mechanistic analysis. J.C. and M.L. participated in manuscript revision and scientific discussion. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.
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Di, Y., Ba, K., Ye, L. et al. Dual-Band Infrared PbS Colloidal Quantum Dot Focal Plane Array. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69199-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69199-1
