IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v13y2022i1d10.1038_s41467-022-28415-4.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Interface engineering of Ta3N5 thin film photoanode for highly efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting

Author

Listed:
  • Jie Fu

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

  • Zeyu Fan

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
    University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

  • Mamiko Nakabayashi

    (The University of Tokyo)

  • Huanxin Ju

    (CoreTech Integrated Limited)

  • Nadiia Pastukhova

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

  • Yequan Xiao

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

  • Chao Feng

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

  • Naoya Shibata

    (The University of Tokyo)

  • Kazunari Domen

    (The University of Tokyo
    Shinshu University)

  • Yanbo Li

    (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
    University of Electronic Science and Technology of China)

Abstract

Interface engineering is a proven strategy to improve the efficiency of thin film semiconductor based solar energy conversion devices. Ta3N5 thin film photoanode is a promising candidate for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. Yet, a concerted effort to engineer both the bottom and top interfaces of Ta3N5 thin film photoanode is still lacking. Here, we employ n-type In:GaN and p-type Mg:GaN to modify the bottom and top interfaces of Ta3N5 thin film photoanode, respectively. The obtained In:GaN/Ta3N5/Mg:GaN heterojunction photoanode shows enhanced bulk carrier separation capability and better injection efficiency at photoanode/electrolyte interface, which lead to a record-high applied bias photon-to-current efficiency of 3.46% for Ta3N5-based photoanode. Furthermore, the roles of the In:GaN and Mg:GaN layers are distinguished through mechanistic studies. While the In:GaN layer contributes mainly to the enhanced bulk charge separation efficiency, the Mg:GaN layer improves the surface charge inject efficiency. This work demonstrates the crucial role of proper interface engineering for thin film-based photoanode in achieving efficient PEC water splitting.

Suggested Citation

  • Jie Fu & Zeyu Fan & Mamiko Nakabayashi & Huanxin Ju & Nadiia Pastukhova & Yequan Xiao & Chao Feng & Naoya Shibata & Kazunari Domen & Yanbo Li, 2022. "Interface engineering of Ta3N5 thin film photoanode for highly efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-28415-4
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28415-4
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-28415-4
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-022-28415-4?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hiroshi Nishiyama & Taro Yamada & Mamiko Nakabayashi & Yoshiki Maehara & Masaharu Yamaguchi & Yasuko Kuromiya & Yoshie Nagatsuma & Hiromasa Tokudome & Seiji Akiyama & Tomoaki Watanabe & Ryoichi Narush, 2021. "Photocatalytic solar hydrogen production from water on a 100-m2 scale," Nature, Nature, vol. 598(7880), pages 304-307, October.
    2. Tsuyoshi Takata & Junzhe Jiang & Yoshihisa Sakata & Mamiko Nakabayashi & Naoya Shibata & Vikas Nandal & Kazuhiko Seki & Takashi Hisatomi & Kazunari Domen, 2020. "Photocatalytic water splitting with a quantum efficiency of almost unity," Nature, Nature, vol. 581(7809), pages 411-414, May.
    3. Kai-Hang Ye & Haibo Li & Duan Huang & Shuang Xiao & Weitao Qiu & Mingyang Li & Yuwen Hu & Wenjie Mai & Hongbing Ji & Shihe Yang, 2019. "Enhancing photoelectrochemical water splitting by combining work function tuning and heterojunction engineering," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. Yanbo Li & Jason K. Cooper & Wenjun Liu & Carolin M. Sutter-Fella & Matin Amani & Jeffrey W. Beeman & Ali Javey & Joel W. Ager & Yi Liu & Francesca M. Toma & Ian D. Sharp, 2016. "Defective TiO2 with high photoconductive gain for efficient and stable planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 7(1), pages 1-7, November.
    5. Hemin Zhang & Dongfeng Li & Woo Jin Byun & Xiuli Wang & Tae Joo Shin & Hu Young Jeong & Hongxian Han & Can Li & Jae Sung Lee, 2020. "Gradient tantalum-doped hematite homojunction photoanode improves both photocurrents and turn-on voltage for solar water splitting," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 11(1), pages 1-11, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yequan Xiao & Zeyu Fan & Mamiko Nakabayashi & Qiaoqiao Li & Liujiang Zhou & Qian Wang & Changli Li & Naoya Shibata & Kazunari Domen & Yanbo Li, 2022. "Decoupling light absorption and carrier transport via heterogeneous doping in Ta3N5 thin film photoanode," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Kenji Katayama & Kei Kawaguchi & Yuta Egawa & Zhenhua Pan, 2022. "Local Charge Carrier Dynamics for Photocatalytic Materials Using Pattern-Illumination Time-Resolved Phase Microscopy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-13, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chao Feng & Zhi Liu & Huanxin Ju & Andraž Mavrič & Matjaz Valant & Jie Fu & Beibei Zhang & Yanbo Li, 2024. "Understanding the in-situ transformation of CuxO interlayers to increase the water splitting efficiency in NiO/n-Si photoanodes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    2. Qitao Chen & Baodong Mao & Yanhong Liu & Yunjie Zhou & Hui Huang & Song Wang & Longhua Li & Wei-Cheng Yan & Weidong Shi & Zhenhui Kang, 2024. "Designing 2D carbon dot nanoreactors for alcohol oxidation coupled with hydrogen evolution," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-14, December.
    3. Yannan Liu & Cheng-Hao Liu & Tushar Debnath & Yong Wang & Darius Pohl & Lucas V. Besteiro & Debora Motta Meira & Shengyun Huang & Fan Yang & Bernd Rellinghaus & Mohamed Chaker & Dmytro F. Perepichka &, 2023. "Silver nanoparticle enhanced metal-organic matrix with interface-engineering for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    4. Takuya Suguro & Fuminao Kishimoto & Nobuko Kariya & Tsuyoshi Fukui & Mamiko Nakabayashi & Naoya Shibata & Tsuyoshi Takata & Kazunari Domen & Kazuhiro Takanabe, 2022. "A hygroscopic nano-membrane coating achieves efficient vapor-fed photocatalytic water splitting," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    5. Yuyan Huang & Minhui Shen & Huijie Yan & Yingge He & Jianqiao Xu & Fang Zhu & Xin Yang & Yu-Xin Ye & Gangfeng Ouyang, 2024. "Achieving a solar-to-chemical efficiency of 3.6% in ambient conditions by inhibiting interlayer charges transport," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-15, December.
    6. Changhao Liu & Ningsi Zhang & Yang Li & Rongli Fan & Wenjing Wang & Jianyong Feng & Chen Liu & Jiaou Wang & Weichang Hao & Zhaosheng Li & Zhigang Zou, 2023. "Long-term durability of metastable β-Fe2O3 photoanodes in highly corrosive seawater," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-8, December.
    7. Yaguang Li & Xianhua Bai & Dachao Yuan & Fengyu Zhang & Bo Li & Xingyuan San & Baolai Liang & Shufang Wang & Jun Luo & Guangsheng Fu, 2022. "General heterostructure strategy of photothermal materials for scalable solar-heating hydrogen production without the consumption of artificial energy," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.
    8. Sun, Zhen & Wang, Junxiang & Lu, Sen & Zhang, Guan, 2022. "Enzymatic biomass hydrolysis assisted photocatalytic H2 production from water employing porous carbon doped brookite/anatase heterophase titania photocatalyst," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C), pages 151-160.
    9. Yimeng Li & Li Yang & Huijie He & Lei Sun & Honglei Wang & Xu Fang & Yanliang Zhao & Daoyuan Zheng & Yu Qi & Zhen Li & Weiqiao Deng, 2022. "In situ photodeposition of platinum clusters on a covalent organic framework for photocatalytic hydrogen production," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    10. Isaac Holmes-Gentle & Saurabh Tembhurne & Clemens Suter & Sophia Haussener, 2023. "Kilowatt-scale solar hydrogen production system using a concentrated integrated photoelectrochemical device," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 8(6), pages 586-596, June.
    11. Vikas Nandal & Ryota Shoji & Hiroyuki Matsuzaki & Akihiro Furube & Lihua Lin & Takashi Hisatomi & Masanori Kaneko & Koichi Yamashita & Kazunari Domen & Kazuhiko Seki, 2021. "Unveiling charge dynamics of visible light absorbing oxysulfide for efficient overall water splitting," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-8, December.
    12. Chunzhi Li & Jiali Liu & He Li & Kaifeng Wu & Junhui Wang & Qihua Yang, 2022. "Covalent organic frameworks with high quantum efficiency in sacrificial photocatalytic hydrogen evolution," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    13. Ganceng Yang & Yanqing Jiao & Haijing Yan & Ying Xie & Chungui Tian & Aiping Wu & Yu Wang & Honggang Fu, 2022. "Unraveling the mechanism for paired electrocatalysis of organics with water as a feedstock," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    14. Xinyi Zhang & Michael Schwarze & Reinhard Schomäcker & Roel Krol & Fatwa F. Abdi, 2023. "Life cycle net energy assessment of sustainable H2 production and hydrogenation of chemicals in a coupled photoelectrochemical device," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-10, December.
    15. Hamdani, I.R. & Bhaskarwar, A.N., 2021. "Recent progress in material selection and device designs for photoelectrochemical water-splitting," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    16. Rui-Ting Gao & Jiangwei Zhang & Tomohiko Nakajima & Jinlu He & Xianhu Liu & Xueyuan Zhang & Lei Wang & Limin Wu, 2023. "Single-atomic-site platinum steers photogenerated charge carrier lifetime of hematite nanoflakes for photoelectrochemical water splitting," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    17. Hao Wu & Lei Zhang & Aijun Du & Rowshanak Irani & Roel Krol & Fatwa F. Abdi & Yun Hau Ng, 2022. "Low-bias photoelectrochemical water splitting via mediating trap states and small polaron hopping," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    18. Wei-Wei Fang & Gui-Yu Yang & Zi-Hui Fan & Zi-Chao Chen & Xun-Liang Hu & Zhen Zhan & Irshad Hussain & Yang Lu & Tao He & Bi-En Tan, 2023. "Conjugated cross-linked phosphine as broadband light or sunlight-driven photocatalyst for large-scale atom transfer radical polymerization," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-10, December.
    19. Kenji Katayama & Kei Kawaguchi & Yuta Egawa & Zhenhua Pan, 2022. "Local Charge Carrier Dynamics for Photocatalytic Materials Using Pattern-Illumination Time-Resolved Phase Microscopy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-13, December.
    20. Camilo A. Mesa & Michael Sachs & Ernest Pastor & Nicolas Gauriot & Alice J. Merryweather & Miguel A. Gomez-Gonzalez & Konstantin Ignatyev & Sixto Giménez & Akshay Rao & James R. Durrant & Raj Pandya, 2024. "Correlating activities and defects in (photo)electrocatalysts using in-situ multi-modal microscopic imaging," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-28415-4. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.