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Liu Y, Xia M, Ren D, Nussbaum S, Yum JH, Grätzel M, Guijarro N, Sivula K. Photoelectrochemical CO 2 Reduction at a Direct CuInGaS 2/Electrolyte Junction. ACS Energy Lett 2023; 8:1645-1651. [PMID: 37090168 PMCID: PMC10111408 DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.3c00022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Photoelectrochemical (PEC) CO2 reduction has received considerable attention given the inherent sustainability and simplicity of directly converting solar energy into carbon-based chemical fuels. However, complex photocathode architectures with protecting layers and cocatalysts are typically needed for selective and stable operation. We report herein that bare CuIn0.3Ga0.7S2 photocathodes can drive the PEC CO2 reduction with a benchmarking 1 Sun photocurrent density of over 2 mA/cm2 (at -2 V vs Fc+/Fc) and a product selectivity of up to 87% for CO (CO/all products) production while also displaying long-term stability for syngas production (over 44 h). Importantly, spectroelectrochemical analysis using PEC impedance spectroscopy (PEIS) and intensity-modulated photocurrent spectroscopy (IMPS) complements PEC data to reveal that tailoring the proton donor ability of the electrolyte is crucial for enhancing the performance, selectivity, and durability of the photocathode. When a moderate amount of protons is present, the density of photogenerated charges accumulated at the interface drops significantly, suggesting a faster charge transfer process. However, with a high concentration of proton donors, the H2 evolution reaction is preferred.
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2
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Liu H, Lang X, Zhu C, Timoshenko J, Rüscher M, Bai L, Guijarro N, Yin H, Peng Y, Li J, Liu Z, Wang W, Cuenya BR, Luo J. Efficient Electrochemical Nitrate Reduction to Ammonia with Copper-Supported Rhodium Cluster and Single-Atom Catalysts. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2022; 61:e202202556. [PMID: 35297151 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202202556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NITRR) provides a promising solution for restoring the imbalance in the global nitrogen cycle while enabling a sustainable and decentralized route to source ammonia. Here, we demonstrate a novel electrocatalyst for NITRR consisting of Rh clusters and single-atoms dispersed onto Cu nanowires (NWs), which delivers a partial current density of 162 mA cm-2 for NH3 production and a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 93 % at -0.2 V vs. RHE. The highest ammonia yield rate reached a record value of 1.27 mmol h-1 cm-2 . Detailed investigations by electron paramagnetic resonance, in situ infrared spectroscopy, differential electrochemical mass spectrometry and density functional theory modeling suggest that the high activity originates from the synergistic catalytic cooperation between Rh and Cu sites, whereby adsorbed hydrogen on Rh site transfers to vicinal *NO intermediate species adsorbed on Cu promoting the hydrogenation and ammonia formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huimin Liu
- Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Solar Energy Research Center, Key Laboratory of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Thin Film Photoelectronic Technology, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Xiuyao Lang
- Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Solar Energy Research Center, Key Laboratory of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Thin Film Photoelectronic Technology, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Chao Zhu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 639798, Singapore
| | - Janis Timoshenko
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martina Rüscher
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lichen Bai
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Institute of Electrochemistry, University of Alicante, 03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Haibo Yin
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Yue Peng
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Junhua Li
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Zheng Liu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 639798, Singapore
| | - Weichao Wang
- Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Solar Energy Research Center, Key Laboratory of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Thin Film Photoelectronic Technology, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Beatriz Roldan Cuenya
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jingshan Luo
- Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Solar Energy Research Center, Key Laboratory of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Ministry of Education Engineering Research Center of Thin Film Photoelectronic Technology, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300350, China
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Liu H, Lang X, Zhu C, Timoshenko J, Rüscher M, Bai L, Guijarro N, Yin H, Peng Y, Li J, Liu Z, Wang W, Cuenya BR, Luo J. Efficient Electrochemical Nitrate Reduction to Ammonia with Copper Supported Rhodium Cluster and Single‐Atom Catalysts. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202202556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Huimin Liu
- Nankai University College of Electronic Information and Optical Engineering Tongyan Road 300350 Tianjin CHINA
| | - Xiuyao Lang
- Nankai University Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology CHINA
| | - Chao Zhu
- Nanyang Technological University School of Materials Science and Engineering SINGAPORE
| | - Janis Timoshenko
- Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Department of Interface Science GERMANY
| | - Martina Rüscher
- Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Department of Interface Science GERMANY
| | - Lichen Bai
- Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Department of Interface Science GERMANY
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- University of Alicante: Universitat d'Alacant Institute of Electrochemistry SPAIN
| | - Haibo Yin
- Tsinghua University State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control CHINA
| | - Yue Peng
- Tsinghua University State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control CHINA
| | - Junhua Li
- Tsinghua University State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment CHINA
| | - Zheng Liu
- Nanyang Technological University School of Materials Science and Engineering SINGAPORE
| | - Weichao Wang
- Nankai University Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology CHINA
| | - Beatriz Roldan Cuenya
- Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Department of Interface Science GERMANY
| | - Jingshan Luo
- Nankai University Institute of Photoelectronic Thin Film Devices and Technology 38 Tongyan Road 300350 Tianjin CHINA
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Liu Y, Bouri M, Yao L, Xia M, Mensi M, Grätzel M, Sivula K, Aschauer U, Guijarro N. Identifizierung von reaktiven Zentren und Oberflächenfallen in Chalkopyrit‐Photokathoden. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202108994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yongpeng Liu
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Maria Bouri
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of Bern Freiestrasse 3 CH-3012 Bern Schweiz
| | - Liang Yao
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Meng Xia
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Mounir Mensi
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Michael Grätzel
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
| | - Ulrich Aschauer
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of Bern Freiestrasse 3 CH-3012 Bern Schweiz
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 Lausanne 1015 Schweiz
- Aktuelle Adresse: Institute of Electrochemistry Universidad de Alicante Apartat 99 E-03080 Alicante Spanien
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Liu Y, Bouri M, Yao L, Xia M, Mensi M, Grätzel M, Sivula K, Aschauer U, Guijarro N. Identifying Reactive Sites and Surface Traps in Chalcopyrite Photocathodes. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021; 60:23651-23655. [PMID: 34428331 PMCID: PMC8597141 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202108994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Revised: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Gathering information on the atomic nature of reactive sites and trap states is key to fine tuning catalysis and suppressing deleterious surface voltage losses in photoelectrochemical technologies. Here, spectroelectrochemical and computational methods were combined to investigate a model photocathode from the promising chalcopyrite family: CuIn0.3Ga0.7S2. We found that voltage losses are linked to traps induced by surface Ga and In vacancies, whereas operando Raman spectroscopy revealed that catalysis occurred at Ga, In, and S sites. This study allows establishing a bridge between the chalcopyrite's performance and its surface's chemistry, where avoiding formation of Ga and In vacancies is crucial for achieving high activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongpeng Liu
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Maria Bouri
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Bern, Freiestrasse 3, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Liang Yao
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Meng Xia
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Mounir Mensi
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Michael Grätzel
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland
| | - Ulrich Aschauer
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Bern, Freiestrasse 3, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, Lausanne, 1015, Switzerland.,Present address: Institute of Electrochemistry, Universidad de Alicante, Apartat 99, E-03080, Alacant, Spain
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Cho HH, Yao L, Yum JH, Liu Y, Boudoire F, Wells RA, Guijarro N, Sekar A, Sivula K. A semiconducting polymer bulk heterojunction photoanode for solar water oxidation. Nat Catal 2021. [DOI: 10.1038/s41929-021-00617-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
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Xing C, Liu Y, Zhang Y, Wang X, Guardia P, Yao L, Han X, Zhang T, Arbiol J, Soler L, Chen Y, Sivula K, Guijarro N, Cabot A, Llorca J. A Direct Z-Scheme for the Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production from a Water Ethanol Mixture on CoTiO 3/TiO 2 Heterostructures. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2021; 13:449-457. [PMID: 33386057 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c17004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Photocatalytic H2 evolution from ethanol dehydrogenation is a convenient strategy to store solar energy in a highly valuable fuel with potential zero net CO2 balance. Herein, we report on the synthesis of CoTiO3/TiO2 composite catalysts with controlled amounts of highly distributed CoTiO3 nanodomains for photocatalytic ethanol dehydrogenation. We demonstrate these materials to provide outstanding hydrogen evolution rates under UV and visible illumination. The origin of this enhanced activity is extensively analyzed. In contrast to previous assumptions, UV-vis absorption spectra and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) prove CoTiO3/TiO2 heterostructures to have a type II band alignment, with the conduction band minimum of CoTiO3 below the H2/H+ energy level. Additional steady-state photoluminescence (PL) spectra, time-resolved PL spectra (TRPLS), and electrochemical characterization prove such heterostructures to result in enlarged lifetimes of the photogenerated charge carriers. These experimental evidence point toward a direct Z-scheme as the mechanism enabling the high photocatalytic activity of CoTiO3/TiO2 composites toward ethanol dehydrogenation. In addition, we probe small changes of temperature to strongly modify the photocatalytic activity of the materials tested, which could be used to further promote performance in a solar thermophotocatalytic reactor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Congcong Xing
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), Sant Adriá de Besós 08930, Barcelona, Spain
- Institute of Energy Technologies, Department of Chemical Engineering and Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, EEBE, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Yu Zhang
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), Sant Adriá de Besós 08930, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Xiang Wang
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), Sant Adriá de Besós 08930, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Pablo Guardia
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), Sant Adriá de Besós 08930, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Liang Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xu Han
- Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC and BIST, Campus UAB, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Ting Zhang
- Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC and BIST, Campus UAB, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Jordi Arbiol
- Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC and BIST, Campus UAB, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
- ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lluís Soler
- Institute of Energy Technologies, Department of Chemical Engineering and Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, EEBE, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Yufen Chen
- Institute of Energy Technologies, Department of Chemical Engineering and Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, EEBE, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Andreu Cabot
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), Sant Adriá de Besós 08930, Barcelona, Spain
- ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Llorca
- Institute of Energy Technologies, Department of Chemical Engineering and Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, EEBE, 08019 Barcelona, Spain
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Liu Y, Guijarro N, Sivula K. Understanding Surface Recombination Processes Using Intensity‐Modulated Photovoltage Spectroscopy on Hematite Photoanodes for Solar Water Splitting. Helv Chim Acta 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/hlca.202000064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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Yao L, Guijarro N, Boudoire F, Liu Y, Rahmanudin A, Wells RA, Sekar A, Cho HH, Yum JH, Le Formal F, Sivula K. Establishing Stability in Organic Semiconductor Photocathodes for Solar Hydrogen Production. J Am Chem Soc 2020; 142:7795-7802. [PMID: 32270679 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c00126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
As organic semiconductors attract increasing attention to application in the fields of bioelectronics and artificial photosynthesis, understanding the factors that determine their robust operation in direct contact with aqueous electrolytes becomes a critical task. Herein we uncover critical factors that influence the operational stability of donor:acceptor bulk heterojunction photocathodes for solar hydrogen production and significantly advance their performance under operational conditions. First, using the direct photoelectrochemical reduction of aqueous Eu3+ and impedance spectroscopy, we determine that replacing the commonly used fullerene-based electron acceptor with a perylene diimide-based polymer drastically increases operational stability and identify that limiting the photogenerated electron accumulation at the organic/water interface to values of ca. 100 nC cm-2 is required for stable operation (>12 h). These insights are extended to solar-driven hydrogen production using MoS3, MoP, or RuO2 water reduction catalyst overlayers where it is found that the catalyst morphology strongly affects performance due to differences in charge extraction. Optimized performance of bulk heterojunction photocathodes coated with a MoS3:MoP composite gave 1 Sun photocurrent density up to 8.7 mA cm-2 at 0 V vs RHE (pH 1). However, increased stability was gained with RuO2 where initial photocurrent density (>8 mA cm-2) deceased only 15% or 33% during continuous operation for 8 or 20 h, respectively, thus demonstrating unprecedented robustness without a protection layer. This performance represents a new benchmark for organic semiconductor photocathodes for solar fuel production and advances the understanding of stability criteria for organic semiconductor/water-junction-based devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liang Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Florent Boudoire
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Aiman Rahmanudin
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Rebekah A Wells
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Arvindh Sekar
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Han-Hee Cho
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Jun-Ho Yum
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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Anderson SL, Tiana D, Ireland CP, Capano G, Fumanal M, Gładysiak A, Kampouri S, Rahmanudin A, Guijarro N, Sivula K, Stylianou KC, Smit B. Taking lanthanides out of isolation: tuning the optical properties of metal-organic frameworks. Chem Sci 2020; 11:4164-4170. [PMID: 34122879 PMCID: PMC8152675 DOI: 10.1039/d0sc00740d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are increasingly used in applications that rely on the optical and electronic properties of these materials. These applications require a fundamental understanding on how the structure of these materials, and in particular the electronic interactions of the metal node and organic linker, determines these properties. Herein, we report a combined experimental and computational study on two families of lanthanide-based MOFs: Ln-SION-1 and Ln-SION-2. Both comprise the same metal and ligand but with differing structural topologies. In the Ln-SION-2 series the optical absorption is dominated by the ligand and using different lanthanides has no impact on the absorption spectrum. The Ln-SION-1 series shows a completely different behavior in which the ligand and the metal node do interact electronically. By changing the lanthanide in Ln-SION-1, we were able to tune the optical absorption from the UV region to absorption that includes a large part of the visible region. For the early lanthanides we observe intraligand (electronic) transitions in the UV region, while for the late lanthanides a new band appears in the visible. DFT calculations showed that the new band in the visible originates in the spatial orbital overlap between the ligand and metal node. Our quantum calculations indicated that Ln-SION-1 with late lanthanides might be (photo)conductive. Experimentally, we confirm that these materials are weakly conductive and that with an appropriate co-catalysts they can generate hydrogen from a water solution using visible light. Our experimental and theoretical analysis provides fundamental insights for the rational design of Ln-MOFs with the desired optical and electronic properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha L Anderson
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Davide Tiana
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland .,School of Chemistry, University College Cork College Rd Cork Ireland
| | - Christopher P Ireland
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Gloria Capano
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Maria Fumanal
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Andrzej Gładysiak
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Stavroula Kampouri
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Aiman Rahmanudin
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques (ISIC), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques (ISIC), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques (ISIC), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) CH-1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Kyriakos C Stylianou
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
| | - Berend Smit
- Laboratory of Molecular Simulation (LSMO), Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Valais Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Rue de l'Industrie 17 CH-1951 Sion Switzerland
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Guijarro N, Yao L, Le Formal F, Wells RA, Liu Y, Darwich BP, Navratilova L, Cho H, Yum J, Sivula K. Lead Halide Perovskite Quantum Dots To Enhance the Power Conversion Efficiency of Organic Solar Cells. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019; 58:12696-12704. [DOI: 10.1002/anie.201906803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Liang Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Rebekah A. Wells
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Barbara Primera Darwich
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Lucie Navratilova
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Electron MicroscopyÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 12 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Han‐Hee Cho
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Jun‐Ho Yum
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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12
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Guijarro N, Yao L, Le Formal F, Wells RA, Liu Y, Darwich BP, Navratilova L, Cho H, Yum J, Sivula K. Lead Halide Perovskite Quantum Dots To Enhance the Power Conversion Efficiency of Organic Solar Cells. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201906803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Liang Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Rebekah A. Wells
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Barbara Primera Darwich
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Lucie Navratilova
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Electron MicroscopyÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 12 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Han‐Hee Cho
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Jun‐Ho Yum
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic NanomaterialsÉcole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Station 6 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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13
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Zuo Y, Liu Y, Li J, Du R, Yu X, Xing C, Zhang T, Yao L, Arbiol J, Llorca J, Sivula K, Guijarro N, Cabot A. Solution-Processed Ultrathin SnS 2-Pt Nanoplates for Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2019; 11:6918-6926. [PMID: 30694646 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b17622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Tin disulfide (SnS2) is attracting significant interest because of the abundance of its elements and its excellent optoelectronic properties in part related to its layered structure. In this work, we specify the preparation of ultrathin SnS2 nanoplates (NPLs) through a hot-injection solution-based process. Subsequently, Pt was grown on their surface via in situ reduction of a Pt salt. The photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of such nanoheterostructures as photoanode toward water oxidation was tested afterwards. Optimized SnS2-Pt photoanodes provided significantly higher photocurrent densities than bare SnS2 and SnS2-based photoanodes of previously reported study. Mott-Schottky analysis and PEC impedance spectroscopy (PEIS) were used to analyze in more detail the effect of Pt on the PEC performance. From these analyses, we attribute the enhanced activity of SnS2-Pt photoanodes reported here to a combination of the very thin SnS2 NPLs and the proper electronic contact between Pt nanoparticles (NPs) and SnS2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong Zuo
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
- Departament d'Electronica , Universitat de Barcelona , 08028 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO) , École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne , Switzerland
| | - Junshan Li
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
- Departament d'Electronica , Universitat de Barcelona , 08028 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Ruifeng Du
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
- Departament d'Electronica , Universitat de Barcelona , 08028 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Xiaoting Yu
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
- Departament d'Electronica , Universitat de Barcelona , 08028 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Congcong Xing
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Ting Zhang
- Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC, and BIST , Campus UAB , Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Liang Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO) , École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne , Switzerland
| | - Jordi Arbiol
- Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), CSIC, and BIST , Campus UAB , Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona , Spain
- ICREA , Pg. Lluís Companys 23 , 08010 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Jordi Llorca
- Institute of Energy Technologies, Department of Chemical Engineering, and Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering , Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, EEBE , 08019 Barcelona , Spain
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO) , École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne , Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO) , École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne , Switzerland
| | - Andreu Cabot
- Catalonia Institute for Energy Research - IREC , Sant Adrià del Besòs, 08930 Barcelona , Spain
- ICREA , Pg. Lluís Companys 23 , 08010 Barcelona , Spain
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14
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Zhu X, Guijarro N, Liu Y, Schouwink P, Wells RA, Le Formal F, Sun S, Gao C, Sivula K. Spinel Structural Disorder Influences Solar-Water-Splitting Performance of ZnFe 2 O 4 Nanorod Photoanodes. Adv Mater 2018; 30:e1801612. [PMID: 29975805 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201801612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2018] [Revised: 06/05/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Zinc spinel ferrite, ZnFe2 O4 (ZFO), is an emerging photoanode material for photoelectrochemical (PEC) solar fuel production. However, a lack of fundamental insight into the factors limiting the photocurrent has prevented substantial advance in its performance. Herein, it is found that ZFO nanorod array photoelectrodes with varying crystallinity exhibit vastly different PEC properties. Using a sacrificial hole scavenger (H2 O2 ), spatially defined carrier generation, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, it is shown that ZFO with a relatively poor crystallinity but a higher spinel inversion degree (due to cation disorder) exhibits superior photogenerated charge separation efficiency and improved majority charge carrier transport compared to ZFO with higher crystallinity and a lower inversion degree. Conversely, the latter condition leads to better charge injection efficiency. Optimization of these factors, and the addition of a nickel-iron oxide cocatalyst overlayer, leads to a new benchmark solar photocurrent for ZFO of 1.0 mA cm-2 at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) and 1.7 mA cm-2 at 1.6 V versus RHE. Importantly, the observed correlation between the cation disorder and the PEC performance represents a new insight into the factors important to the PEC performance of the spinel ferrites and suggests a path to further improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaodi Zhu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
- National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, No.42, Hezuohua Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230029, P. R. China
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Yongpeng Liu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Pascal Schouwink
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Rue de l'Industrie 17, 1951, Sion, Switzerland
| | - Rebekah A Wells
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Song Sun
- National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, No.42, Hezuohua Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230029, P. R. China
| | - Chen Gao
- National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, No.42, Hezuohua Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230029, P. R. China
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
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15
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Abstract
Few-atomic-layer nanoflakes of liquid-phase exfoliated semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) hold promise for large-area, high-performance, low-cost solar energy conversion, but their performance is limited by recombination at defect sites. Herein, we examine the role of defects on the performance of WSe2 thin film photocathodes for solar H2 production by applying two separate treatments, a pre-exfoliation annealing and a post-deposition surfactant attachment, designed to target intraflake and edge defects, respectively. Analysis by TEM, XRD, XPS, photoluminescence, and impedance spectroscopy are used to characterize the effects of the treatments and photoelectrochemical (PEC) measurements using an optimized Pt-Cu cocatalyst (found to offer improved robustness compared to Pt) are used to quantify the performance of photocathodes (ca. 11 nm thick) consisting of 100-1000 nm nanoflakes. Surfactant treatment results in an increased photocurrent attributed to edge site passivation. The pre-annealing treatment alone, while clearly altering the crystallinity of pre-exfoliated powders, does not significantly affect the photocurrent. However, applying both defect treatments affords a considerable improvement that represents a new benchmark for the performance of solution-processed WSe2: solar photocurrents for H2 evolution up to 4.0 mA cm-2 and internal quantum efficiency over 60% (740 nm illumination). These results also show that charge recombination at flake edges dominates performance in bare TMD nanoflakes, but when the edge defects are passivated, internal defects become important and can be reduced by pre-annealing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyun Yu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Melissa Johnson
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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16
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Jeanbourquin XA, Rahmanudin A, Yu X, Johnson M, Guijarro N, Yao L, Sivula K. Amorphous Ternary Charge-Cascade Molecules for Bulk Heterojunction Photovoltaics. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2017; 9:27825-27831. [PMID: 28796490 PMCID: PMC5571830 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.7b04983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2017] [Accepted: 07/31/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Ternary bulk heterojunctions with cascade-type energy-level configurations are of significant interest for further improving the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of organic solar cells. However, controlling the self-assembly in solution-processed ternary blends remains a key challenge. Herein, we leverage the ability to control the crystallinity of molecular semiconductors via a spiro linker to demonstrate a simple strategy suggested to drive the self-assembly of an ideal charge-cascade morphology. Spirobifluorene (SF) derivatives with optimized energy levels from diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) or perylenediimide (PDI) components, coded as SF-(DPP)4 and SF-(PDI)4, are synthesized and investigated for application as ternary components in the host blend of poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl):[6,6]phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM). Differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray/electron diffraction studies suggest that at low loadings (up to 5 wt %) the ternary component does not perturb crystallization of the donor:acceptor host blend. In photovoltaic devices, up to 36% improvement in the PCE (from 2.5% to 3.5%) is found when 1 wt % of either SF-(DPP)4 or SF-(PDI)4 is added, and this is attributed to an increase in the fill factor and open-circuit voltage, while at higher loadings, the PCE decreased because of a lower short-circuit current density. A comparison of the quantum efficiency measurements [where light absorption of SF-(DPP)4 was found to give up to 95% internal conversion] suggests that improvement due to enhanced light absorption or to better exciton harvesting via resonance energy transfer is unlikely. These data, together with the crystallinity results, support the inference that the SF compounds are excluded to the donor:acceptor interface by crystallization of the host blend. This conclusion is further supported by impedance spectroscopy and a longer measured charge-carrier lifetime in the ternary blend.
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17
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Gasperini A, Johnson M, Jeanbourquin X, Yao L, Rahmanudin A, Guijarro N, Sivula K. Semiconducting alternating multi-block copolymers via a di-functionalized macromonomer approach. Polym Chem 2017. [DOI: 10.1039/c6py01921h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
A route to fully-conjugated semiconducting block copolymers is presented and the prototype exhibits nanoscopic phase domain separation and good mobility.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. Gasperini
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - M. Johnson
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - X. Jeanbourquin
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - L. Yao
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - A. Rahmanudin
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - N. Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - K. Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials (LIMNO)
- Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015 Lausanne
- Switzerland
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18
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Bourée WS, Prévot MS, Jeanbourquin XA, Guijarro N, Johnson M, Formal FL, Sivula K. Robust Hierarchically Structured Biphasic Ambipolar Oxide Photoelectrodes for Light-Driven Chemical Regulation and Switchable Logic Applications. Adv Mater 2016; 28:9308-9312. [PMID: 27604410 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201602265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2016] [Revised: 07/22/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Tunable ambipolar photoelectrochemical behavior emerges from microdomains of nanostructured p-type CuFeO2 and n-type Fe2 O3 that arise from a single facile solution-processed thin film. The switchable operation of this system is controlled by chemical, optical, or electronic inputs with a uniquely high photocurrent response (on the order of 1 mA cm-2 ), suitable for robust practical application as an oxygen photoregulator.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wiktor S Bourée
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu S Prévot
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xavier A Jeanbourquin
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Melissa Johnson
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
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19
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Abstract
![]()
A conjugated
polymer known for high stability (poly[benzimidazobenzophenanthroline],
coded as BBL) is examined as a photoanode for direct solar water oxidation.
In aqueous electrolyte with a sacrificial hole acceptor (SO32–), photoelectrodes show a morphology-dependent
performance. Films prepared by a dispersion-spray method with a nanostructured
surface (feature size of ∼20 nm) gave photocurrents up to 0.23
± 0.02 mA cm–2 at 1.23 VRHE under
standard simulated solar illumination. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy
reveals a constant flat-band potential over a wide pH range at +0.31
VNHE. The solar water oxidation photocurrent with bare
BBL electrodes is found to increase with increasing pH, and no evidence
of semiconductor oxidation was observed over a 30 min testing time.
Characterization of the photo-oxidation reaction suggests H2O2 or •OH production with the bare film, while
functionalization of the interface with 1 nm of TiO2 followed
by a nickel–cobalt catalyst gave solar photocurrents of 20–30
μA cm–2, corresponding with O2 evolution.
Limitations to photocurrent production are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline Bornoz
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu S Prévot
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xiaoyun Yu
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) , Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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20
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Li Y, Guijarro N, Zhang X, Prévot MS, Jeanbourquin XA, Sivula K, Chen H, Li Y. Templating Sol-Gel Hematite Films with Sacrificial Copper Oxide: Enhancing Photoanode Performance with Nanostructure and Oxygen Vacancies. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2015; 7:16999-17007. [PMID: 26186065 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5b02111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Nanostructuring hematite films is a critical step for enhancing photoelectrochemical performance by circumventing the intrinsic limitations on minority carrier transport. Herein, we present a novel sol-gel approach that affords nanostructured hematite films by including CuO as sacrificial templating agent. First, by annealing in air at 450 °C a film comprising an intimate mixture of CuO and Fe2O3 nanoparticles is obtained. The subsequent treatment with NaCl and annealing at 700 °C under Argon reveals a nanostructured highly crystalline hematite film devoid of copper. Photoelectrochemical investigations reveal that the incorporation of CuO as templating agent and the inert conditions employed during the annealing play a crucial role in the performance of the hematite electrodes. Mott-Schottky analysis shows a higher donor concentration when annealing in inert conditions, and even higher when combined with the NaCl treatment. These findings agree well with the presence of an oxygen-deficient shell on the material's surface evidenced by FT-IR and XPS measurements. Likewise, the incorporation of the CuO enhances the photocurrent obtained at 1.23 V from 0.55 to 0.8 mA·cm(-2) because of an improved nanostructure. Optimized films demonstrate an incident photon-to-current efficiency (IPCE) of 52% at 380 nm when applying 1.23 V versus RHE, and a faradaic efficiency for water splitting close to unity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Li
- †Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin Key Laboratory of Applied Catalysis Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering (Tianjin University), School of Chemical Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
- ‡Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Néstor Guijarro
- ‡Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xiaoli Zhang
- †Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin Key Laboratory of Applied Catalysis Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering (Tianjin University), School of Chemical Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Mathieu S Prévot
- ‡Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xavier A Jeanbourquin
- ‡Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- ‡Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hong Chen
- §School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Yongdan Li
- †Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin Key Laboratory of Applied Catalysis Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering (Tianjin University), School of Chemical Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
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21
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Prévot MS, Guijarro N, Sivula K. Enhancing the Performance of a robust sol-gel-processed p-type delafossite CuFeO2 photocathode for solar water reduction. ChemSusChem 2015; 8:1359-1367. [PMID: 25572288 DOI: 10.1002/cssc.201403146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Delafossite CuFeO2 is a promising material for solar hydrogen production, but is limited by poor photocurrent. Strategies are demonstrated herein to improve the performance of CuFeO2 electrodes prepared directly on transparent conductive substrates by using a simple sol-gel technique. Optimizing the delafossite layer thickness and increasing the majority carrier concentration (through the thermal intercalation of oxygen) give insights into the limitations of photogenerated charge extraction and enable performance improvements. In oxygen-saturated electrolyte, (sacrificial) photocurrents (1 sun illumination) up to 1.51 mA cm(-2) at +0.35 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) are observed. Water photoreduction with bare delafossite is limited by poor hydrogen evolution catalysis, but employing methyl viologen as an electron acceptor verifies that photogenerated electrons can be extracted from the conduction band before recombination into mid-gap trap states identified by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Through the use of suitable oxide overlayers and a platinum catalyst, sustained solar hydrogen production photocurrents of 0.4 mA cm(-2) at 0 V versus RHE (0.8 mA cm(-2) at -0.2 V) are demonstrated. Importantly, bare CuFeO2 is highly stable at potentials at which photocurrent is generated. No degradation is observed after 40 h under operating conditions in oxygen-saturated electrolyte.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu S Prévot
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015-Lausanne (Switzerland)
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Guijarro N, Guillén E, Lana-Villarreal T, Gómez R. Quantum dot-sensitized solar cells based on directly adsorbed zinc copper indium sulfide colloids. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2015; 16:9115-22. [PMID: 24700258 DOI: 10.1039/c4cp00294f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Heavy metal-based quantum dots (QDs) have been demonstrated to behave as efficient sensitizers in QD-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs), as attested by the countless studies and encouraging efficiencies reported so far. However, their intrinsic toxicity has arisen as a major issue for the prospects of commercialization. Here, we examine the potential of environmentally friendly zinc copper indium sulfide (ZCIS) QDs for the fabrication of liquid-junction QDSSCs by means of photoelectrochemical measurements. A straightforward approach to directly adsorb ZCIS QDs on TiO2 from a colloidal dispersion is presented. Incident photon-to-current efficiency (IPCE) spectra of sensitized photoanodes show a marked dependence on adsorption time, with longer times leading to poorer performances. Cyclic voltammograms point to a blockage of the channels of the mesoporous TiO2 film by the agglomeration of QDs as the main reason for the decrease in efficiency. Photoanodes were also subjected to the ZnS treatment. Its effects on electron recombination with the electrolyte are analyzed through electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and photopotential measurements. The corresponding results bring out the role of the ZnS coating as a barrier layer in preventing electron leakage toward the electrolyte, as argued in other QD-sensitized systems. The beneficial effect of the ZnS coating is ultimately reflected in the power conversion efficiency of complete devices, reaching values of 2%. In a more general vein, through these findings, we aim to call the attention to the potentiality of this quaternary alloy, virtually unexplored as a light harvester for sensitized devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Fisica, Universitat d'Alacant, Apartat 99, E-03080 Alacant, Spain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, CH H4 565, Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Florian Le Formal
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, CH H4 565, Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, CH H4 565, Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Abstract
An overview of surface engineering approaches to enhance the photoelectrochemical performance of commmon semiconductor photoelectrodes for solar energy conversion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015-Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - Mathieu S. Prévot
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015-Lausanne
- Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials
- Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
- 1015-Lausanne
- Switzerland
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Guijarro N, Prévot MS, Sivula K. Enhancing the Charge Separation in Nanocrystalline Cu2ZnSnS4 Photocathodes for Photoelectrochemical Application: The Role of Surface Modifications. J Phys Chem Lett 2014; 5:3902-3908. [PMID: 26278767 DOI: 10.1021/jz501996s] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) colloidal inks were employed to prepare thin-film photocathodes that served as a model system to interrogate the effect of different surface treatments, viz. CdS, CdSe, and ZnSe buffer layers along with methylviologen (MV) adsorption, on the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance using aqueous Eu(3+) redox electrolyte. PEC experiments revealed that ZnSe and CdSe overlayers outperform traditional CdS, and the additional surface modification with MV was found to further boost the charge extraction. By analyzing the photocurrent onset behavior and measuring the open circuit photopotentials, insights are gained into the nature of the observed improvements. While a more favorable conduction band offset rationalizes the improvement offered by CdSe, charge transfer through midgap states is invoked for ZnSe. Improvement offered by MV treatment is clearly caused by both the shifting of the flat-band potential and a charge-transfer mediation effect. Overall, this work suggests promising alternative surface treatments for CZTS photocathodes for PEC energy conversion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015-Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu S Prévot
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015-Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kevin Sivula
- Laboratory for Molecular Engineering of Optoelectronic Nanomaterials, Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 6, 1015-Lausanne, Switzerland
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Guijarro N, Lana-Villarreal T, Gómez R. Electron lifetime in quantum-dot-sensitized photoanodes by open-circuit-potential measurements. Chemphyschem 2012; 13:3589-94. [PMID: 22907819 DOI: 10.1002/cphc.201200386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2012] [Revised: 07/23/2012] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Good relations: the electron lifetime (τ) has turned out to be one of the most influential parameters in the performance of quantum-dot- and dye-sensitized solar cells. Different approaches for the analysis of the open-circuit-potential decay are presented, showing the strong effect on the calculated lifetime values of the way of relating potential to electron concentration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Spain.
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Guijarro N, Lutz T, Lana-Villarreal T, O'Mahony F, Gómez R, Haque SA. Toward Antimony Selenide Sensitized Solar Cells: Efficient Charge Photogeneration at spiro-OMeTAD/Sb2Se3/Metal Oxide Heterojunctions. J Phys Chem Lett 2012; 3:1351-1356. [PMID: 26286782 DOI: 10.1021/jz301528a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Photovoltaic devices comprising metal chalcogenide nanocrystals as light-harvesting components are emerging as a promising power-generation technology. Here, we report a strategy to evenly deposit Sb2Se3 nanoparticles on mesoporous TiO2 as confirmed by Raman spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and transmission electron microscopy. Detailed study of the interfacial charge transfer dynamics by means of transient absorption spectroscopy provides evidence of electron injection across the Sb2Se3/TiO2 interface upon illumination, which can be improved 3-fold by annealing at low temperatures. Following addition of the spiro-OMeTAD hole transporting material, regeneration yields exceeding 80% are achieved, and the lifetime of the charge separated species is found to be on the millisecond time scale (τ50% ∼ 50 ms). These findings are discussed with respect to the design of solid-state Sb2Se3 sensitized solar cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Thierry Lutz
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
| | - Teresa Lana-Villarreal
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Flannan O'Mahony
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
| | - Roberto Gómez
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Saif A Haque
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
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Guijarro N, Lutz T, Lana-Villarreal T, O'Mahony F, Gómez R, Haque SA. Toward Antimony Selenide Sensitized Solar Cells: Efficient Charge Photogeneration at spiro-OMeTAD/Sb2Se3/Metal Oxide Heterojunctions. J Phys Chem Lett 2012; 3:1351-1356. [PMID: 26286782 DOI: 10.1021/jz3004365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Photovoltaic devices comprising metal chalcogenide nanocrystals as light-harvesting components are emerging as a promising power-generation technology. Here, we report a strategy to evenly deposit Sb2Se3 nanoparticles on mesoporous TiO2 as confirmed by Raman spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and transmission electron microscopy. Detailed study of the interfacial charge transfer dynamics by means of transient absorption spectroscopy provides evidence of electron injection across the Sb2Se3/TiO2 interface upon illumination, which can be improved 3-fold by annealing at low temperatures. Following addition of the spiro-OMeTAD hole transporting material, regeneration yields exceeding 80% are achieved, and the lifetime of the charge separated species is found to be on the millisecond time scale (τ50% ∼ 50 ms). These findings are discussed with respect to the design of solid-state Sb2Se3 sensitized solar cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Néstor Guijarro
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Thierry Lutz
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
| | - Teresa Lana-Villarreal
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Flannan O'Mahony
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
| | - Roberto Gómez
- ‡Institut Universitari d'Electroquímica i Departament de Química Física, Universitat d'Alacant, Ap. 99, E-03080, Alicante, Spain
| | - Saif A Haque
- †Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, U.K
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Guijarro N, Lana-Villarreal T, Gómez R. Modulating the n- and p-type photoelectrochemical behavior of zinc copper indium sulfide quantum dots by an electrochemical treatment. Chem Commun (Camb) 2012; 48:7681-3. [DOI: 10.1039/c2cc33481j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Lana-Villarreal T, Campiña JM, Guijarro N, Gómez R. Solid-state electropolymerization and doping of triphenylamine as a route for electroactive thin films. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2011; 13:4013-21. [DOI: 10.1039/c0cp01818j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Guijarro N, Campiña JM, Shen Q, Toyoda T, Lana-Villarreal T, Gómez R. Uncovering the role of the ZnS treatment in the performance of quantum dot sensitized solar cells. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2011; 13:12024-32. [DOI: 10.1039/c1cp20290a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 204] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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