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Acceptor‐Doping Accelerated Charge Separation in Cu 2 O Photocathode for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting: Theoretical and Experimental Studies
Author(s) -
Zhang Mengmeng,
Wang Jiajun,
Xue Hui,
Zhang Jinfeng,
Peng Shengjie,
Han Xiaopeng,
Deng Yida,
Hu Wenbin
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.202007680
Subject(s) - photocurrent , water splitting , acceptor , photocathode , doping , materials science , dopant , electron acceptor , charge carrier , photoelectrochemistry , impurity , hydrothermal circulation , analytical chemistry (journal) , chemical physics , electron , chemistry , photochemistry , optoelectronics , electrochemistry , photocatalysis , chemical engineering , electrode , catalysis , physics , condensed matter physics , engineering , biochemistry , chromatography , quantum mechanics , organic chemistry
Cu 2 O is a typical photoelectrocatalyst for sustainable hydrogen production, while the fast charge recombination hinders its further development. Herein, Ni 2+ cations have been doped into a Cu 2 O lattice (named as Ni‐Cu 2 O) by a simple hydrothermal method and act as electron traps. Theoretical results predict that the Ni dopants produce an acceptor impurity level and lower the energy barrier of hydrogen evolution. Photoelectrochemical (PEC) measurements demonstrate that Ni‐Cu 2 O exhibits a photocurrent density of 0.83 mA cm −2 , which is 1.34 times higher than that of Cu 2 O. And the photostability has been enhanced by 7.81 times. Moreover, characterizations confirm the enhanced light‐harvesting, facilitated charge separation and transfer, prolonged charge lifetime, and increased carrier concentration of Ni‐Cu 2 O. This work provides deep insight into how acceptor‐doping modifies the electronic structure and optimizes the PEC process.