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c-In2O3/α-Fe2O3 heterojunction photoanodes for water oxidation

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Abstract

Hematite (α-Fe2O3) is supposed to be one of the most promising photoanode candidates for solar-driven water splitting. However, the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of α-Fe2O3 is limited by fast recombination of carriers. In this work, we demonstrate that the recombination of α-Fe2O3 films could be suppressed by forming the heterojunction structure with cubic-In2O3. By utilizing the magnetron sputtering method, the In2O3/α-Fe2O3 films were prepared when the In concentration exceeded its solubility in α-Fe2O3 matrix, which was confirmed by the XRD and TEM analysis. The dependence of charge separation on heterojunction structure was evidenced by Mott–Schottky and EIS analyses. It was found that the enhanced separation of holes and electrons in α-Fe2O3 films contributed to higher PEC performance.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research for the Central Universities (N130510003) and the Provincial Education Department of Liaoning (LJQ2014026). J.J. Cai thanks the Northeastern University for excellent doctoral dissertation breeding program and the Project of Cultivation of Outstanding Young Scientists of Liaoning Province (Grant No. 2014029205). G.W. Qin thanks the National Science Foundation of China (51525101).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory for Anisotropy and Texture of Materials (MoE), Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110819, China

    Jiajia Cai, Song Li, Haijun Pan, Yinglei Liu & Gaowu Qin

  2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110819, China

    Gaowu Qin

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  1. Jiajia Cai
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  2. Song Li
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  3. Haijun Pan
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Correspondence to Song Li.

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Cai, J., Li, S., Pan, H. et al. c-In2O3/α-Fe2O3 heterojunction photoanodes for water oxidation. J Mater Sci 51, 8148–8155 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-016-0085-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-016-0085-3

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