Interim Anatase Coating Layer Stabilizes Rutile@CrxOy Photoanode for Visible‐Light‐Driven Water Oxidation

Ternary core–shell heterostructured rutile@anatase@Cr_xO_y nanorod arrays were elaborately designed as photoanodes for efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting under visible‐light illumination. The four‐fold enhanced and stabilized visible‐light photocurrent highlights the unique role of the interim anatase layer in accelerating the interfacial charge transfer from the Cr_xO_y chromophore to rutile nanorods.     

A 1D/2D Helical CdS/ZnIn2S4 Nano‐Heterostructure

Multidimensional nano‐heterostructures (NHSs) that have unique dimensionality‐dependent integrative and synergic effects are intriguing but still underdeveloped. Here, we report the first helical 1D/2D epitaxial NHS between CdS and ZnIn₂S₄. Experimental and theoretical studies reveal that the mismatches in lattice and dangling bonds between 1D and 2D units govern the growth procedure. The resulting well‐defined interface induces the delocalized interface states, thus facilitate the charge transfer and enhance the performance in the photoelectrochemical cells. We foresee that the mechanistic insights gained and the electronic structures revealed would inspire the design of more complex 1D/2D NHSs with outstanding functionalities.     

Nanopatterning of mesoporous inorganic oxide films for efficient light harvesting of dye-sensitized solar cells

Nanopatterning provides facile process to well-arrayed mesoporous inorganic oxide films at low cost by using readily available pastes and elastomeric nanostamps. The fabricated nanopattern boosted the light-harvesting efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) by a light-trapping technique. The iodine-free solid-state DSSCs showed a 40 % increase in the current density and high efficiency (7.03 %).     

Quantum Dot Sensitized Solar Cell: Photoanodes,Counter Electrodes,and Electrolytes

In this study, we provide the reader with an overview of quantum dot application in solar cells to replace dye molecules, where the quantum dots play a key role in photon absorption and excited charge generation in the device. The brief shows the types of quantum dot sensitized solar cells and presents the obtained results of them for each type of cell, and provides the advantages and disadvantages. Lastly, methods are proposed to improve the efficiency performance in the next researching.     

原位水解沉积制备高效氮化钽微球太阳能分解水光阳极

利用一种新的原位水解沉积方法,以在高湿度空气中老化的甲醇中作为溶剂,通过乙醇钽水解而成前驱体微球颗粒沉积,制备出了高效的Ta₃N₅微球光电极,其1.6 V（vs RHE）电极电位下的光电流值达到了6.6 mA·cm^-2。相反地,在新鲜的甲醇溶液中没有钽前驱体微球颗粒沉积。这表明甲醇中水的含量对Ta₃N₅微球光电极的形成十分重要。另外,本制备方法也能方便地在其他透明导电衬底上制备出Ta₃N₅。     

In Situ Preparation of a Ti3+ Self‐Doped TiO2 Film with Enhanced Activity as Photoanode by N2H4 Reduction

A new synthetic method to fabricate Ti³⁺‐modified, highly stable TiO₂ photoanodes for H₂O oxidation is reported. With Ti foil as both the conducting substrate and the Ti³⁺/Ti⁴⁺ source, one‐dimensional blue Ti³⁺/TiO₂ crystals were grown by a one‐step hydrothermal reaction. The concentration of Ti³⁺ was further tuned by N₂H₄ reduction, leading to a greater photoelectrocatalytic activity, as evidenced by a high photocurrent density of 0.64 mA cm^?2 at 1.0 V vs RHE under simulated AM 1.5 G illumination. Electron paramagnetic resonance and Mott–Schottky plots reveal that higher charge‐carrier density owing to N₂H₄ reduction contributes to the observed improvement. The generality of this synthesis method was demonstrated by its effectiveness in improving the performance of other types of photoanodes. By integrating the advantages of the 1D TiO₂ architecture with those of Ti³⁺ self‐doping, this work provides a versatile tool toward the fabrication of efficient TiO₂ photoanodes.     

Mineralization of flexible mesoporous TiO2 photoanodes using two low‐temperature dielectric barrier discharges in ambient air

Two types of dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs), volume DBD (called Industrial Corona) and coplanar DBD, were used for low temperature (70 °C) atmospheric pressure plasma mineralization of mesoporous methyl‐silica/titanium dioxide nanocomposite photoanodes. The photoanodes with a thickness of approx. 300 nm were inkjet‐printed on flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) foils. Plasma treatments of both DBDs led to changes in the chemical stoichiometry and morphology of the mesoporous photoanodes, resulting in a significant increase of the work function from approx. 4.0 to 4.3 eV and 4.8 eV, after plasma mineralization with volume DBD and coplanar DBD, respectively. We also studied the effect of plasma mineralization on the photoelectrochemical properties of the flexible mesoporous TiO₂ photoanodes. Plasma mineralization with volume DBD and coplanar DBD showed different effects on the generated photocurrent in the photoanodes. Although the plasma mineralization with volume DBD showed only a minor effect on the photocurrent, plasma mineralization with coplanar DBD led to significantly higher photocurrents. We found that the enhancement of the photoelectrochemical properties was related to the homogeneity of the plasma‐treated surfaces—arising from different spatial properties of the plasma between volume and coplanar DBDs. Furthermore, the results showed that plasma mineralization using coplanar DBD can effectively change the energy levels of the surface. This resulted in the enhancement of the work function and the photoelectrochemical properties of the mesoporous TiO₂ photoanodes. This contribution shows that coplanar arrangement of electrodes in DBDs generates plasma of higher efficacy compared with standard volume DBD that is currently often used in industrial processes.