Construction of [NbO]_6−x‐xS Structure to Change Charge Density and Regulate Spontaneous Polarization to Achieve Efficient Pyro‐Photo‐Electric Water Splitting System of NaNbO₃

Abstract

Pyroelectric materials in the field of photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting still face the problems of difficult low spontaneous polarization intensity and excessive carrier recombination. Based on the above problems, we altered the interaction between S‐Nb‐S in the [NbO]6‐x‐xS structure, and the constructed [NbO]6‐x‐xS structure achieved the regulation of charge density change and spontaneous polarization. The results show that under the stimulation of light and temperature fluctuations, the current density of the NS‐4 photoanode is as high as 0.574 mA/cm2 at 1.23 VRHE, which is about 1.59 times higher than the pure NaNbO3 current density value, and the NS ‐4 photoanode achieves IPCE value of 16.08%. The first‐principles density‐functional theory calculations (DFT) reveal the principle of the [NbO]6‐x‐xS structure for the suppression function of the carrier recombination and the improvement function of the pyroelectric effect. The analysis shows that the S‐doping leads to the weakening of S‐Nb‐S interactions in the [NbO]6‐x‐xS structure, which improves the pyroelectric effect and suppresses the photo/pyro‐generated carrier recombination, and effectively enhances the performance of the pyro‐photo‐electric synergistic water splitting system. This work promotes the development of pyroelectric materials in the field of photoelectrochemical water splitting.