Morphology-control, as a promising and effective strategy, is widely implemented to change surface atomic active sites and thus enhance the intrinsic electrocatalytic activity and selectivity. As a typical n-type semiconductor, a series of bismuth vanadate samples with tunable morphologies of clavate, fusiform, flowered, bulky, and nanoparticles were prepared to investigate the morphology effect. Among all the synthesized samples, the clavate shaped BiVO4 with high index facets of (112), (301), and (200) exhibited reduced extrinsic pseudocapacitance and enhanced redox response, which is beneficial for tackling the sluggish voltammetric response of the traditional nanoparticle on the electrode surface. Benefiting from the large surface-active area and favorable ion diffusion channels, the clavate shaped BiVO4 exhibited the best electrochemical sensing performance for paracetamol with a linear response in the range of 0.5–100 µmol and a low detection limit of 0.2 µmol. The enhanced electrochemical detection of paracetamol by bismuth vanadate nanomaterials with controllable shapes indicates their potential for applications as electrochemical sensors.

As a semimetal, tellurium (Te) shows metallic and dielectric properties in the UV and visible ranges, respectively, and has potential as a broad-band light absorber. In this paper, plasmonic−semiconductor hybrid nanoscale films consisting of Fe 2 O 3 thin films and Te nanospheres are designed and demonstrated. Te clusters are proved to have an enhancement of the electric near-field in a broad UV−vis−NIR spectrum, which facilitates light absorption and charge separation in photoelectrocatalysis. The thickness of Fe 2 O 3 films is adjusted from 22 to 137 nm. The photocurrent density enhancement factor of Te-modified films is 13 times higher than that of 22 nm Fe 2 O 3 films. Particularly, a Te-decorated Fe 2 O 3 ultrathin film exhibits photoelectrochemical activity comparable to that of bulk Fe 2 O 3 , suggesting significant near-field enhancement from plasmon modes of the Te clusters. It is found that the Te cluster decoration led to a significant decrease of the charge transfer resistance, demonstrating that the Te clusters could boost the formation rate and suppress the recombination rate of electron−hole pairs. The hybridization of Te nanoparticles with nanoscale semiconductor films represents an efficient way to enhance the solar energy conversion efficiency.