Plasma-induced N doping and carbon vacancies in self-supporting 3C-SiC photoanode for efficient photoelectrochemical water oxidation

Abstract

Due to suitable bandgap and excellent stability, 3C-SiC is being investigated as one of the promising candidates for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water oxidation. However, the limited surface activity and short carrier lifetime constrains 3C-SiC photoanodes for efficient PEC water splitting. To tackle these problems, this work proposes plasma technique to control the crystal structure and optical characteristics of 3C-SiC. Nitrogen plasma induces carbon vacancies (Vc) and Si-N bonds, further leading to narrower bandgap of 3C-SiC. The combination of Vc and N doping enhanced the light trapping capability of electrode, thereby improving the efficiency of electron-hole pair separation and charge transfer, resulting in an accelerated water oxidation reaction, i.e., photocurrent density (2.50 mA cm-2 at 1.23 VRHE) increased by 7.6 times compared to pristine SiC. This work offers an effective strategy for regulating the electronic structure of SiC-based photoanodes by plasma treatment, which may be extended to other photoelectrodes for PEC application.

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
16 Apr 2024
Accepted
19 Jun 2024
First published
19 Jun 2024

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2024, Accepted Manuscript

Plasma-induced N doping and carbon vacancies in self-supporting 3C-SiC photoanode for efficient photoelectrochemical water oxidation

L. Wu, S. Guan, B. Zhou, S. Guo, J. Wang, L. Wu, G. J. H. Melvin, J. Oritz-Medina, M. Wang, H. Ogata, M. Tanemura, Y. A. Kim, M. Terrones, M. Endo and Z. Wang, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2024, Accepted Manuscript , DOI: 10.1039/D4TA02612H

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