# Absorption of single-layer hexagonal boron nitride in the ultraviolet

## TL;DR

This paper provides a theoretical analysis of how single-layer hexagonal boron nitride absorbs ultraviolet light, including formalism development, predictions for different substrates, and comparison with experimental data.

## Contribution

It introduces an efficient method for solving the Wannier equation for excitons in hBN and predicts its UV absorption properties on various substrates.

## Key findings

- Predicted UV absorption spectra of hBN on quartz and graphite
- Calculated exciton radiative lifetimes in hBN
- Compared theoretical predictions with experimental results

## Abstract

In this paper we theoretically describe the absorption of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) single layer. We develop the necessary formalism and present an efficient method for solving the Wannier equation for excitons. We give predictions for the absorption of hBN on quartz and on graphite. We compare our predictions with recently published results [Elias {\it et al.}, Nat. Comm. {\bf 10}, 2639 (2019)] for a monolayer of hBN on graphite. The spontaneous radiative lifetime of excitons in hBN is also computed. We argue that the optical properties of hBN in the ultraviolet are very useful for the study of peptides and other biomolecules.