Geometry-Controlled Polarization Photocurrents in Scalable PtSe2 Infrared Pixels

Eunice Y. Paik; Owen A. Vail; Madaline R. Marland; William A. Beck; Antonio Llopis-Jepsen; Wendy L. Sarney; Jeffery H. Leach; Stefan Heiserer; Nikolas Dominik; Cormac Ó Coileáin; Paul B. Seifert; Georg S. Duesberg; Blair C. Connelly; George J. de Coster

arXiv · 2609.32136

Geometry-Controlled Polarization Photocurrents in Scalable PtSe2 Infrared Pixels

Eunice Y. Paik·Owen A. Vail·Madaline R. Marland·William A. Beck·Antonio Llopis-Jepsen·Wendy L. Sarney·Jeffery H. Leach·Stefan Heiserer·Nikolas Dominik·Cormac Ó Coileáin·Paul B. Seifert·Georg S. Duesberg·Blair C. Connelly·George J. de Coster

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Abstract

Polarization-sensitive photodetectors provide multi-dimensional optical information beyond the capabilities of traditional intensity-based detectors. The noble metal dichalcogenide PtSe2 presents unique opportunities for tunable polarization detection due to its strong spin-orbit coupling, material stability, customizable broadband polarization responses, and direct compatibility with a wide range of substrates for back-end-of-line silicon integration. In this work, we demonstrate room-temperature near-infrared to mid-wavelength infrared polarization photoresponses using scalable, as-grown, wide-area PtSe2 films, and we show that the measured polarization response is reshaped by device geometry. Finite-element current-flow simulations reproduce the observed spatial redistribution of the polarization-sensitive response and localize the transverse polarization response near the pixel center. This geometry-enabled separation allows wavelength-dependent laser spot scans to distinguish symmetry-allowed photocurrents from contact-proximate, dichroism-mediated photothermal contributions. At near-infrared wavelengths, we observe spatial response that is consistent with linear-dichroic photothermoelectric currents, whereas mid-wavelength infrared measurements reveal a helicity-dependent photothermal contribution under oblique illumination. These results identify pixel boundary engineering as both a design lever and a diagnostic tool for scalable PtSe2 polarization-sensitive infrared pixels.

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Eunice Y. Paik, Owen A. Vail, Madaline R. Marland, William A. Beck, Antonio Llopis-Jepsen, Wendy L. Sarney, Jeffery H. Leach, Stefan Heiserer, Nikolas Dominik, Cormac Ó Coileáin, Paul B. Seifert, Georg S. Duesberg, Blair C. Connelly, George J. de Coster. 2026-09-26. Geometry-Controlled Polarization Photocurrents in Scalable PtSe2 Infrared Pixels. https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.32136

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