Effect of Substrates on the Photoelectrochemical Reduction of Water over Cathodically Electrodeposited p-Type Cu2O Thin Films

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• 作者：Sanjib Shyamal ; Paramita Hajra ; Harahari Mandal ; Jitendra Kumar Singh ; Ashis Kumar Satpati ; Surojit Pande ; Chinmoy Bhattacharya
• 刊名：ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
• 出版年：2015
• 出版时间：August 26, 2015
• 年：2015
• 卷：7
• 期：33
• 页码：18344-18352
• 全文大小：549K
• ISSN：1944-8252

文摘

In this study, we demonstrate development of p-Cu₂O thin films through cathodic electrodeposition technique at constant current of 0.1 mA/cmp>2p> on Cu, Al, and indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates from basic CuSO₄ solution containing Triton X-100 as the surfactant at 30鈥?5 掳C. The optical and morphological characterizations of the semiconductors have been carried out using UV鈥搗is spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Raman spectroscopy. The band gap energy of 鈭?.1 eV is recorded, whereas SEM reveals that the surface morphology is covered with Cu₂O semiconductors. XRD analyses confirm that with change in substrate, the size of Cu₂O 鈥渃ubic鈥?crystallites decreases from ITO to Al to Cu substrates. Photoelectrochemical characterizations under dark and illuminated conditions have been carried out through linear sweep voltammetry, chronoamperometry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopic analysis. The photoelectrochemical reduction of water (H₂O 鈫?H₂) in pH 4.9 aqueous solutions over the different substrates vary in the order of Cu > Al > ITO. The highest current of 4.6 mA/cmp>2p> has been recorded over the Cu substrate even at a low illumination of 35 mW/cmp>2p>, which is significantly higher than the values (2.4 mA/cmp>2p> on Au coated FTO or 4.07 mA/cmp>2p> on Cu foil substrate at an illumination of 100 mW/cmp>2p>) reported in literature.