“…In the case of the Co 2p spectrum, as presented in Figure 3 b, the four deconvoluted peaks at 781.9, 798.4, 778.9, and 794.1 eV were ascribed to Co 2p 3/2 and Co 2p 1/2 of Co 2+ , Co 2p 3/2 and Co 2p 1/2 of Co 3+ [ 47 ], respectively, while the two peaks at 785.0 and 803.3 eV were ascribed to the satellites, suggesting the existence of mixed Co 2+ and Co 3+ , possibly originating from the partial surface oxidation of the metal sulfide. As displayed in Figure 3 c, the Fe 2p spectrum with two characteristic peaks at 714.4 and 721.1 eV implies the presence of Fe 3+ for the Fe-CoS 2 /NC-3 sample [ 48 , 49 ]. Figure 3 d shows the S 2p spectrum, and there were two major peaks located at 163.2 and 164.5 eV, attributed to S 2p 3/2 and S 2p 1/2 of the metal-sulfur bonds, respectively [ 50 , 51 ].…”