Single-crystal heterostructured PbTiO3/CdS nanorods with enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic performance

Abstract

Single-crystal heterostructured PbTiO₃/CdS nanorods were fabricated by a hydrothermal process. In the composites, well-crystalline CdS nanoparticles grew on the surfaces of tetragonal perovskite PbTiO₃ nanorods and formed sharp PbTiO₃/CdS interfaces. It was revealed that the as-synthesized heterostructured PbTiO₃/CdS nanorods exhibited higher photocatalytic performance in the degradation of MB under visible light irradiation than pristine PbTiO₃ nanorods and CdS nanoparticles. The enhanced performance is associated with a suitable band alignment and the promoted separation of photogenerated carriers by forming sharp interfaces between PbTiO₃ and CdS in the heterostructure. Our results suggest that the heterostructured PbTiO₃/CdS nanorods may be promising for highly efficient visible-light-driven photocatalysts.