New types of semiconductor devices that respond to light could be possible using materials called perovskites, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Davis. The work, published in Advanced Materials, shows that halide perovskite crystals reversibly change shape when exposed to light.
Perovskites are semiconductors, but with very distinct properties from conventional inorganic semiconductors such as silicon and gallium arsenide. They can include both organic and inorganic species and they can be much cheaper to manufacture.
"They are 'smart materials' that can be tuned to respond to a stimulus in a way we can control," said Marina Leite, professor of materials science engineering at UC Davis and senior author on the paper. "Their chemistry is very different in a way that can be beneficial for creating devices we couldn't build before."