Atomically-thin two-dimensional (2D) layered transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have been extensively studied in recent years because of their appealing electrical and optical properties. Here, we report on the fabrication of ReS2 field-effect t
ransistors via the encapsulation of ReS2 nanosheets in a high-k{appa} Al2O3 dielectric environment. Low-temperature transport measurements allowed us to observe a direct metal-to-insulator transition originating from strong electron-electron interactions. Remarkably, the photodetectors based on ReS2 exhibit gate-tunable photoresponsivity up to 16.14 A/W and external quantum efficiency reaching 3,168 %, showing a competitive device performance to those reported in graphene, MoSe2, GaS and GaSe-based photodetectors. Our study unambiguously distinguishes ReS2 as a new candidate for future applications in electronics and optoelectronics.
