Premium
Metallic Twin Boundaries Boost the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction on the Basal Plane of Molybdenum Selenotellurides
Author(s) -
Kosmala Tomasz,
Coy Diaz Horacio,
Komsa HannuPekka,
Ma Yujing,
Krasheninnikov Arkady V.,
Batzill Matthias,
Agnoli Stefano
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
advanced energy materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.08
H-Index - 220
eISSN - 1614-6840
pISSN - 1614-6832
DOI - 10.1002/aenm.201800031
Subject(s) - materials science , density functional theory , molybdenum , pyrolytic carbon , basal plane , metastability , characterization (materials science) , chemical engineering , electrochemistry , hydrogen , metal , highly oriented pyrolytic graphite , graphite , nanotechnology , chemical physics , chemistry , computational chemistry , crystallography , metallurgy , pyrolysis , organic chemistry , electrode , physics , engineering
The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a fundamental process that impacts several important clean energy technologies. Great efforts have been taken to identify alternative materials that could replace Pt for this reaction or that may present additional functional properties such as optical activity and advanced electronic properties. Herein, a comparative study of the HER activity for ultrathin films of MoTe 2 , MoSe 2 , and their solid solutions on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite is reported. Combining advanced characterization techniques and density functional theory calculations with electrochemical measurements, it is shown that the chemical activity of the scarcely reactive 2H phases can be boosted by the presence of metallic twin boundaries. These defects, which are thermodynamically stable and naturally present in Mo‐enriched MoTe 2 and MoSe 2 , endow the basal plane of the 2H phase with a high chemical activity, which is comparable to the metastable 1T polymorph.