LAUSR

Abstract We report on the production of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) dispersion with high–concentration mixed-solvent strategy. The MoS 2 and WS 2 thin films are processed by liquid exfoliation which has advantages for residue-free, large-scale, and low-cost in TMDCs film fabrication. Various thicknesses of TMDCs films are prepared and controlled by a centrifuge process for the photovoltaic applications (5 × 5 mm scale) with gold/TMDCs/silicon/indium geometry. Based on ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy measurement results, the energy band diagram of the devices using MoS 2 and WS 2 films can be constructed. The external quantum efficiency and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of MoS 2 and WS 2 devices are measured with different film thicknesses. The 126–nm-thick MoS 2 and 132–nm-thick WS 2 film devices show the maximum PCEs of 3.55% and 2.98%, respectively, under 100 mW cm −2 solar illumination. Thus, we demonstrate potential of MoS 2 and WS 2 films in photovoltaic applications.