• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.655-660
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• 2013

Photoelectrochemical cells have been used in photolysis of water to generate hydrogen as a clean energy source. A high efficiency electrode for photoelectrochemical cell systems was realized using a ZnO hierarchical nanostructure. A ZnO nanofiber mat structure was fabricated by electrospinning of Zn solution on the substrate, followed by oxidation; on this substrate, hydrothermal synthesis of ZnO nanorods on the ZnO nanofibers was carried out to form a ZnO hierarchical structure. The thickness of the nanofiber mat and the thermal annealing temperature were determined as the parameters for optimization. The morphology of the structures was examined by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The performance of the ZnO nanofiber mat and the potential of the ZnO hierarchical structures as photoelectrochemical cell electrodes were evaluated by measurement of the photoelectron conversion efficiencies under UV light. The highest photoconversion efficiency observed was 63 % with a ZnO hierarchical structure annealed at $400^{\circ}C$ in air. The morphology and the crystalline quality of the electrode materials greatly influenced the electrode performance. Therefore, the combination of the two fabrication methods, electrospinning and hydrothermal synthesis, was successfully applied to fabricate a high performance photoelectrochemical cell electrode.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.263-270
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• 2000

The Pt/copper oxide/n-Si electrodes were fabricated by depositing copper oxide thin film of 500${\AA}$ and very thin Pt layer on the n-type (100) Si substrate. hotoelectrochemical properties and stability profiles of the electrodes were investigated as a function of deposition time of Pt layer. As the deposition time of Pt layer increased up to 10 seconds, the photocurrent and quantum efficiency were increased and then decreased with further depositing time. The better cell stability was observed for the electrode with longer deposition time. The improvements in above photoelectrochemical properties indicate that Pt layer acts as a catalyst layer at electrode/electrolyte interface as well as a protective layer. The decreasing tendency of the photocurrent and efficiency for the electrode with Pt layer deposited above 20 seconds was explained as an increases in probbility of electron-hole pair recombination and also the absorbing photon loss at electrode surface due to the excessive thickness of Pt layer. The results were confirmed by impedance spectroscopy, mutiple cycle voltammograms and microstructural analyses.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.60-68
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• 2018

The design and fabrication of photoelectrochemical (PEC) electrodes for efficient water splitting is important for developing a sustainable hydrogen evolution system. Among various development approaches for PEC electrodes, the chemical vapor deposition method of atomic layer deposition (ALD), based on self-limiting surface reactions, has attracted attention because it allows precise thickness and composition control as well as conformal coating on various substrates. In this study, recent research progress in improving PEC performance using ALD coating methods is discussed, including 3D and heterojunction-structured PEC electrodes, ALD coatings of noble metals, and the use of sulfide materials as co-catalysts. The enhanced long-term stability of PEC cells by ALD-deposited protecting layers is also reviewed. ALD provides multiple routes to develop improved hydrogen evolution PEC cells.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.939-942
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• 2008

Photoelectrochemical deposition of CdZnSe thin films on the Se-modified Au electrode using electrochemical quartz crystal microgravimetry (EQCM) and voltammetry is described. Corrosion of pre-deposited Se electrodes by illumination at a fixed potential resulted in $Se^{2-}$ species, which was manifest from the EQCM frequency changes. $Se^{2-}$ species generated from the photocorrosion reacted with $Cd^{2+}$ and $Zn^{2+}$ ions in the electrolyte to form CdZnSe films on the Au electrode. The effect of electrolyte composition on the composition and band gap of CdZnSe films was studied in detail. Also, photoelectrochemistry, EDX, Raman spectroscopy were used for the characterization of CdZnSe thin films.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.331-336
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• 2009

This article introduces the research status for the photoelectrochemical $H_2$ production. Fundamentals to the photoelectrochemical water-splitting cells are given and technical issues, research status, and development trend are also reviewed.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.7
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• pp.2200-2206
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• 2012

One-dimensional $TiO_2$ array grown on optically transparent electrode holds a promise as a photoelectrode for photoelectrochemical water splitting; however, its crystal structure is rutile, imposing constraints on the potent use of this nanostructure. To address this issue, a heterojunction with type-II band alignment was fabricated using atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique. One-dimensional core/shell structured $TiO_2$/ZnO heterojunction was superior to $TiO_2$ in the photoelectrochemical water splitting because of better charge separation and more favorable Fermi level. The heterojunction also possesses better light scattering property, which turned out to be beneficial even for improving the photoelectrochemical performance of semiconductor-sensitized solar cell.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.11
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• pp.3261-3266
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• 2014

A pellet of polycrystalline $CuGaO_2$ with a delafossite structure was prepared from $Ga_2O_3$ and CuO by high-temperature solid-state synthesis. The $CuGaO_2$ pellet was a p-type semiconductor for which the electrical conductivity, carrier density, carrier mobility and Seebeck coefficient were $5.34{\times}10^{-2}{\Omega}^{-1}cm^{-1}$, $3.5{\times}10^{20}cm^{-3}$, $9.5{\times}10^{-4}cm^2V^{-1}s^{-1}$ at room temperature, and $+360{\mu}V/K$, respectively. It also exhibited two optical transitions at about 2.7 and 3.6 eV. The photoelectrochemical properties of the $CuGaO_2$ pellet electrode were investigated in aqueous electrolyte solutions. The flat-band potential of this electrode, determined using a Mott-Schottky plot, was +0.18 V vs SCE at pH 4.8 and followed the Nernst equation with respect to pH. Under UV light illumination, a cathodic photocurrent developed, and molecular hydrogen simultaneously evolved on the surface of the electrode due to the direct reduction of water without deposition of any metal catalyst.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.925-928
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• 2010

Nitrogen-doped $TiO_2$ ($TiO_2$:N) nano-particles with a pure anatase crystalline structure were successfully synthesized through the hydrolysis of $TiCl_4$ in an ammonia aqueous solution. The samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), $N_2$-sorption, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-vis DRS) techniques. The absorption edge of nitrogen-doped $TiO_2$ shifted into the visible wavelength region. The photoelectrochemical (PEC) performances were investigated for the $TiO_2$ mesoporous electrodes doped with different nitrogen concentrations. The $TiO_2$:N electrodes exhibited much higher PEC responses compared to the pure $TiO_2$ electrode because of the significantly enhanced visible-photoresponsibility of the $TiO_2$:N electrodes.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.261-267
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• 2018

Hydrothermal synthesis of highly crystalline $TiO_2$ nanorods is a well-developed technique and the nanorods have been widely used as the template for growth of various core-shell nanorod structures. Magneli/CdS core-shell nanorod structures are fabricated for the photoelectrochemical cell (PEC) electrode to achieve enhanced carrier transport along the metallic magneli phase nanorod template. However, the long and thin $TiO_2$ nanorods may form a high resistance path to the electrons transferred from the CdS layer. $TiO_2$ nanorods synthesized are reduced to magneli phases, $TixO_{2x-1}$, by heat treatment in a hydrogen environment. Two types of magneli phase nanorods of $Ti_4O_7$ and $Ti_3O_5$ are synthesized. Structural morphology and X-ray diffraction analyses are carried out. CdS nano-films are deposited on the magneli nanorods for the main light absorption layer to form a photoanode, and the PEC performance is measured under simulated sunlight irradiation and compared with the conventional $TiO_2/CdS$ core-shell nanorod electrode. A higher photocurrent is observed from the stand-alone $Ti_3O_5/CdS$ core-shell nanorod structure in which the nanorods are grown on both sides of the seed layer.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.47-56
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• 1990

Pure titanium rods were oxidized by anodic oxidation, furnace oxidation and flame oxidation and used as a electrode in the photodecomposition of water. The maximum photoelectrochemical conversion efficiency(${\eta}$) was found for flame oxidized electrode ($1200^{\circ}C$ for 2 min in air), 0.8 %. Anodically oxidized electrodes have minimum photoelectrochemical conversion efficiencies, 0.3 %. Furnace oxidized electrode ($800^{\circ}C$ for 10min in air) has 0.5% phtoelectrochemical efficiency and shows a band-gap energy of about 2.9eV. The efficiency shows a parallelism with the presence of the metallic interstitial compound $TiO_{O+X}$(X < 0.33) at the metal-semiconductor interface, the thickness of the sub oxide layer and that of the external rutile scale.