Hydrogen generation by solar water splitting using p-InGaN photoelectrochemical cells

Abstract

Photoelectrochemical effects in p-InxGa1−xN (0≤x≤0.22) alloys have been investigated. Hydrogen generation was observed in p-InGaN semiconducting electrodes under white light illumination with additional bias. It was found that p-InGaN alloys possess much higher conversion efficiencies than p-GaN. Time dependent photocurrent density characteristics showed that the stability of p-InGaN in aqueous HBr is excellent. The photocurrent density was found to increase almost linearly with hole mobility and excitation light intensity.

Tuning the surface Fermi level on p-type gallium nitride nanowires for efficient overall water splitting

“…A lowmagnification STEM-SE image of a single nanowire, as shown in Fig. 4d, further confirms that the cocatalyst nanoparticledecorated GaN nanowire were not etched during the course of reaction, which can be partially attributed to the surface freeholes of Mg-doped GaN that can prevent the catalyst from photocorrosion caused by oxidation 38 . The core-shell Rh/Cr 2 O 3 nanoparticles are also stable in photocatalytic environment, as shown in the BF TEM image in Fig.…”

Cu2O photoelectrodes for solar water splitting: Tuning photoelectrochemical performance by controlled faceting

“…Fujishima and Honda demonstrated PEC water splitting for the first time in 1972 using a TiO 2 photoelectrode [1]. Until now, materials such as GaInP 2 [2,3], Cu 2 O [4][5][6], InGaN [7][8][9][10], InP [11], Fe 2 O 3 [12] and SiC [13][14][15] have been used as photocathodes for PEC water splitting. Cu 2 O is considered as one of the most promising photosensitive materials for PEC water splitting because of its low toxicity, abundance, good environmental acceptability and simple production process.…”

Review of one-dimensional and two-dimensional nanostructured materials for hydrogen generation

“…The next immediate consideration is the E g of the semiconductor, which determines the range of wavelengths for which it can absorb energy to create e-h pairs. Low E g materials such as ferrous oxide (1.9-2.1 eV), 19 tungsten nitride (2.2 eV) 20 and other III-V and II-VI compound semiconductors [21][22][23] may be active materials within the limits of the energetic locations of the CB and VB with respect to the H 2 O redox potential. For some semiconductors, although their E g values cover the visible part of the solar spectrum, their CB and/or VB levels are not compatible with respect to the redox potential of H 2 O.…”