Epitaxial Grown Sb₂Se₃@Sb₂S₃ Core–Shell Nanorod Radial–Axial Hierarchical Heterostructure with Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting Performance

Abstract

Antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) as a light-harvesting material has gradually attracted the attention of researchers in the field of photoelectrocatalysis. Uniquely, the crystal structure consists of one-dimensional (Sb4Se6) n ribbons, with an efficient carrier transport along the ribbon [001] direction. Herein, a novel Sb2Se3@Sb2S3 core–shell nanorod radial–axial hierarchical heterostructure was successfully fabricated by epitaxial growth strategy. Taking advantage of the isomorphous and anisotropic binding modes of (Sb4S­(e)6) n ribbons for Sb2Se3 and Sb2S3, the epitaxially grown core–shell heterostructure forms a van der Waals heterojunction across the radial direction and covalently bonded heterojunction along the axial direction. A photocurrent of 1.37 mA cm–2 was achieved at 0 V vs RHE for the hierarchical Sb2Se3@Sb2S3 nanorod photoelectrode with [101] preferred orientation, up to 40 times higher than for pure Sb2Se3. Moreover, the FeOOH was introduced as a cocatalyst. The photoelectrode decorated with FeOOH shows better stability with a H2 generation rate of 18.9 μmol cm–2 h–1 under neutral conditions. This study provides a new insight into the design of antimony chalcogenide heterostructure photoelectrodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting.

“O-S” Charge Transfer Mechanism Guiding Design of a ZnIn2S4/SnSe2/In2Se3 Heterostructure Photocatalyst for Efficient Hydrogen Production

“…The separation (η sep ) and transfer (η transfer ) efficiencies over ZIS, DZIS, and DZIS/SnSe 2 /In 2 Se 3 were calculated according to the following equations: , η separation = J normalN normala 2 normalS normalO 3 J abs × 100 % η injection = J normalH 2 normalO J normalN normala 2 normalS normalO 3 × 100 % where J abs is the photocurrent density integrating the UV–vis absorption spectra with the standard solar spectrum assuming that the absorbed photon was 100% converted into electrons. J H 2 O is the photocurrent density obtained in the PEC testing in 0.5 M Na 2 SO 4 solution, and J Na 2 SO 3 is the photocurrent density obtained in the PEC measurements in 0.5 M Na 2 SO 3 /Na 2 SO 4 solution.…”

“…The potential range of M−S plots was collected from −1 to −0.2 V under 10 kHz frequency and 0.01 V amplitude. All the collected potential versus Ag/AgCl (E Ag/AgCl ) values were converted to normal hydrogen electrode (NHE) potential (E NHE ) by the formulaE NHE = E Ag/AgCl + 0.197.The separation (η sep ) and transfer (η transfer ) efficiencies over ZIS, DZIS, and DZIS/SnSe 2 /In 2 Se 3 were calculated according to the following equations:20,50…”

Hole Storage Interfacial Regulation of Sb2Se3 Photocathode with Significantly Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Performance

“…Antimony selenide (Sb 2 Se 3 ) has a suitable band gap (1.0–1.3 eV), high electron mobility (16.9 cm 2 V –1 s –1 ), high light absorption coefficient (α > 10 5 cm –1 ), and low cost, making it an ideal material for building photocathodes. − However, the interface of Sb 2 Se 3 is prone to severe photogenerated carrier recombination, which leads to low PEC performance and hinders the improvement of HER efficiency. − To further enhance the PEC performance of the Sb 2 Se 3 photocathode, numerous interface engineering attempts have been made. Pt nanoparticles have high catalytic activity and can effectively accelerate electron transfer for the HER. − de Brito and co-workers further investigated the deposition of Pt nanoparticles on the Sb 2 Se 3 surface by electrodeposition (ED) and photoelectrodeposition (PED) methods .…”

“…After the formation of a heterojunction, the charge is transferred between the two semiconductors, eventually leading to a decrease in the electron cloud density of one semiconductor and an increase in the electron cloud density of the other semiconductor, which is manifested in XPS as a shift in the characteristic peaks. 30 The XPS results show that after the formation of the composite structure, Sb, Se moves to the high binding energy direction while Fe moves to the low binding energy direction, indicating that the intrinsic electrons are transferred from Sb 2 Se 3 to Fh to achieve the equilibrium at the Fermi energy level, suggesting a strong interaction between Sb 2 Se 3 and Fh. Moreover, the Fe element in bilayer Sb 2 Se 3 /Fh is present in the form of Fe 3+ , further demonstrating the successful loading of Fh on Sb 2 Se 3 .…”

rGO空间限域生长超薄In2S3纳米片用于构建高效准 一维Sb2Se3基异质结光阴极

“…The high anisotropy of the crystal structure allows for fast carrier mobility along the 1D (Sb 4 Se 6 ) n strips [20]. 1D nanostructured photoelectrodes, e.g., Sb 2 Se 3 /TiO 2 , Sb 2 Se 3 /CdS, and Sb 2 Se 3 @Sb 2 S 3 , have been reported in succession [21][22][23][24]. However, their small relative specific area and low carrier transport efficiency severely limit the photogenerated carriers from reaching the interface and effectively participating in the PEC water splitting reaction.…”