Double-Hollow Au@CdS Yolk@Shell Nanostructures as Superior Plasmonic Photocatalysts for Solar Hydrogen Production
Journal
Advanced Functional Materials
ISSN
1616301X
Date Issued
2024
Author(s)
Chen, Yi-An
Nakayasu, Yuhi
Lin, Yu-Chang
Kao, Jui-Cheng
Hsiao, Kai-Chi
Le, Quang-Tuyen
Chang, Kao-Der
Wu, Ming-Chung
Pao, Chun-Wei
Chang, Tso-Fu Mark
Sone, Masato
Chen, Chun-Yi
Lo, Yu-Chieh
Lin, Yan-Gu
Yamakata, Akira
Hsu, Yung-Jung
Abstract
Structural engineering has proven effective in tailoring the photocatalytic properties of semiconductor nanostructures. In this work, a sophisticated double-hollow yolk@shell nanostructure composed of a plasmonic, mobile, hollow Au nanosphere (HGN) yolk and a permeable, hollow CdS shell is proposed to achieve remarkable solar hydrogen production. The shell thickness of HGN@CdS is finely adjusted from 7.7, 18.4 to 24.5 nm to investigate its influence on the photocatalytic performance. Compared with pure HGN, pure CdS, a physical mixture of HGN and CdS, and a counterpart single-hollow cit-Au@CdS yolk@shell nanostructure, HGN@CdS exhibits superior hydrogen production under visible light illumination (λ = 400–700 nm). The apparent quantum yield of hydrogen production reaches 8.2% at 320 nm, 6.2% at 420 nm, and 4.4% at 660 nm. The plasmon-enhanced activity at 660 nm is exceptional, surpassing the plasmon-induced photoactivities of the state-of-the-art plasmonic photocatalysts ever reported. The superiority of HGN@CdS originates from the creation of charge separation state at HGN/CdS heterojunction, the considerably long-lived hot electrons of plasmonic HGN, the magnified electric field, and the advantageous features of double-hollow yolk@shell nanostructures. The findings can provide a guideline for the rational design of versatile double-hollow yolk@shell nanostructures for widespread photocatalytic applications. © 2024 The Authors. Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.
Subjects
hollow Au
hollow CdS
plasmonic
solar hydrogen production
yolk@shell
Publisher
John Wiley and Sons Inc
Type
journal article