Non-centrosymmetric Au–SnO2 hybrid nanostructures with strong localization of plasmonic for enhanced photocatalysis application

Abstract

We present an innovative approach to the production of sub-100 nm hollow Au–SnO₂ hybrid nanospheres, employing a low-cost, surfactant-free and environmentally friendly solution-based route. The hollow hybrid nanostructures were synthesized using a seed-mediated hydrothermal method, which can be divided into two stages: (1) formation of multicore–shell Au@SnO₂ nanoparticles (NPs) and (2) thermal diffusion and ripening to form hollow Au–SnO₂ hybrid NPs. The morphology, optical properties and formation mechanism were determined by a collection of joint techniques. Photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in the liquid phase served as a probe reaction to evaluate the activity of the as-prepared hollow hybrid Au–SnO₂ NPs under the irradiation of both visible light and ultraviolet light. Significantly, the as-obtained Au–SnO₂ hybrid nanostructures exhibited enhanced visible light or UV photocatalytic abilities, remarkably superior to commercial pure SnO₂ products and P25 TiO₂, mainly owing to the effective electron hole separation at the SnO₂–Au interfaces and strong localization of plasmonic near-fields effects.