Plasmonic enhanced Cu₂O-Au-BFO photocathodes for solar hydrogen production

Cheng, Xiaorong, Gu, Shoulin, Centeno, Anthony ORCID: 0000-0002-0567-072X and Dawson, Graham ORCID: 0000-0002-1540-4791 (2019) Plasmonic enhanced Cu₂O-Au-BFO photocathodes for solar hydrogen production. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 9 (1). 5140-.

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Abstract

A novel Cu₂O-Au-BFO heterostructure photocathode was constructed which significantly improved the efficiency of photo-generated carrier transfer for solar hydrogen production. A BiFeO₃ (BFO) ferroelectric film was synthesized on top of a Cu₂O layer by a sputtering process. The BFO layer acted to protect the Cu₂O layer from photochemical corrosion, increasing photoelectrochemical (PEC) stability. The p-n heterojunction between Cu₂O and BFO layers enhanced the PEC properties by suppressing charge recombination and improved interfacial charge transfer efficiency. When Cu₂O and BFO are interfaced by Au Nanoparticles (NPs) the PEC performance was further enhanced, due to hot-electron transfer at the plasmonic resonance. After positive poling, the depolarization field across the whole volume of BFO film drove electrons into the electrolyte solution, inducing a significant anodic shift, V_op of 1.01 V vs. RHE, together with a significantly enhanced photocurrent density of -91 μA/cm² at 0 V vs. RHE under 100 mW/cm² illumination. The mechanism was investigated through experimental and theoretivcal calculations.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	7 Affordable and Clean Energy
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	01 Apr 2019 07:38
Last Modified:	15 Mar 2024 12:09
DOI:	10.1038/s41598-019-41613-3
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3035512