Liquid metal-embraced photoactive films for artificial photosynthesis

Abstract

The practical applications of solar-driven water splitting pivot on significant advances that enable scalable production of robust photoactive films. Here, we propose a proof-of-concept for fabricating robust photoactive films by a particle-implanting technique (PiP) which embeds semiconductor photoabsorbers in the liquid metal. The strong semiconductor/metal interaction enables resulting films efficient collection of photogenerated charges and superior photoactivity. A photoanode of liquid-metal embraced BiVO₄ can stably operate over 120 h and retain ~ 70% of activity when scaled from 1 to 64 cm². Furthermore, a Z-scheme photocatalyst film of liquid-metal embraced BiVO₄ and Rh-doped SrTiO₃ particles can drive overall water splitting under visible light, delivering an activity 2.9 times higher than that of the control film with gold support and a 110 h stability. These results demonstrate the advantages of the PiP technique in constructing robust and efficient photoactive films for artificial photosynthesis.

The practical applications of photoelectrochemical water splitting pivot on significant advances that enable scalable production of robust photoactive films. Here, the authors propose a proof-of-concept for fabricating bioinspired robust photoactive films by a particle implanting technique, which embeds semiconductor photoabsorbers in the liquid metal.