1. Enhancement of photoelectrochemical performance of BiFeO3 by Sm3+ doping.
- Author
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Man, Suyao, Leng, Xueyang, Bai, Jinlong, Kan, Sihan, Cui, Yanan, Wang, Jiaxin, and Xu, Lingling
- Subjects
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PHOTOCATHODES , *CARRIER density , *RARE earth ions , *BISMUTH iron oxide , *CHARGE carriers , *ELECTROCHEMICAL analysis - Abstract
Bismuth ferrite (BiFeO 3) holds great potentials in the photoelectrocatalysis due to the advantages of low cost, narrow band gap and good chemical stability. However, the photoelectrochemical performance of BiFeO 3 is usually inhibited by the poor charge carrier transport. Here, we report the flame annealing synthesized Sm3+ doped BiFeO 3 photocathodes for efficient hydrogen production. Greatly enhanced water reduction activity was found in doped samples. The Bi 0.95 Sm 0.05 FeO 3 composition exhibited largest photocurrent density of 0.1061 mA cm−2 at 0 V vs. RHE in 0.5 M Na 2 SO 4 , which was 5.6 times higher than that of the pristine BiFeO 3. Mott-Schottky analysis and electrochemical impedance spectra proved that the Bi3+substitution increased the charge carrier concentration and facilitated the charge migration. Incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency (IPCE) value for Bi 0.95 Sm 0.05 FeO 3 film (∼6.39% at 325 nm) was approximately ten times higher than that of undoped sample. The high performance can be ascribed to the rational Sm3+ doping, which can improve visible light absorption ability, facilitate the charge carrier transport kinetics and hinder the recombination of photogenerated carriers. Our work provides a facile cation doping with rare earth ions to improve the photoelectrochemical performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
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