Plasmon-Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting Using Au Nanoparticles Decorated on Hematite Nanoflake Arrays

Hematite nanoflake arrays were decorated with Au nanoparticles through a simple solution chemistry approach. We show that the photoactivity of Au‐decorated Fe2O3 electrodes for photoelectrochemical water oxidation can be effectively enhanced in the UV/Visible region compared with the bare Fe2O3. Au‐...

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Published inChemSusChem Vol. 8; no. 4; pp. 618 - 622
Main Authors Wang, Lei, Zhou, Xuemei, Nguyen, Nhat Truong, Schmuki, Patrik
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Weinheim WILEY-VCH Verlag 01.02.2015
WILEY‐VCH Verlag
Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
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Summary:Hematite nanoflake arrays were decorated with Au nanoparticles through a simple solution chemistry approach. We show that the photoactivity of Au‐decorated Fe2O3 electrodes for photoelectrochemical water oxidation can be effectively enhanced in the UV/Visible region compared with the bare Fe2O3. Au‐nanoparticle‐decorated Fe2O3 nanoflake electrodes exhibit a significant cathodic shift of the onset potential up to 0.6 V [vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)], and a two times increase in the water oxidation photocurrent is achieved at 1.23 VRHE. A maximum photocurrent of 2.0 mA cm−2 at 1.6 VRHE is obtained in 1 M KOH under AM 1.5 (100 mW cm−2) conditions. The enhancement in photocurrent can be attributed to the Au nanoparticles acting as plasmonic photosensitizers that increase the optical absorption. It′s not only gold that sparkles: We form 1D hematite nanoflake arrays that are decorated with plasmonic Au nanoparticles through a simple solution chemistry approach. We find a significant improvement of the solar water splitting performance due to increased light absorption. This can be attributed to the Au nanoparticles that act as plasmonic photosensitizers.
Bibliography:istex:631EF7FF126D5C6A4A06E68BD69CFF703CBF5E69
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ArticleID:CSSC201403013
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ISSN:1864-5631
1864-564X
DOI:10.1002/cssc.201403013