Dynamics of ballistic photocurrents driven by Coulomb scattering

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates through first-principles simulations that Coulomb scattering can generate significant ballistic photocurrents, offering a new mechanism for the bulk photovoltaic effect in materials like monolayer GeS.

Contribution

It introduces Coulomb scattering as a novel mechanism for ballistic photocurrents in the bulk photovoltaic effect, supported by first-principles rt-TDDFT calculations.

Findings

Ballistic photocurrents can be generated by Coulomb scattering.

Coulomb scattering-induced currents are comparable to shift currents.

Monolayer GeS exhibits significant ballistic photocurrents under realistic conditions.

Abstract

First principles real-time time dependent density functional theory (rt-TDDFT) calculations reveal the existence of ballistic photocurrents generated by Coulomb scattering, which has not previously been considered as a mechanism for the bulk photovoltaic effect. With monolayer GeS as an example, it is predicted that ballistic currents can be comparable to shift currents under experimentally accessible conditions.