Role of Subjacent Plasmon Layer in Improving Photoelectrochemical Response of Metal Oxide Photoelectrodes

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-1621395/v1

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Role of Subjacent Plasmon Layer in Improving Photoelectrochemical Response of Metal Oxide Photoelectrodes

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-1621395/v1

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This report brings out the role of Au plasmons as the subjacent layer below TiO₂ in PEC water splitting for hydrogen generation. Au was deposited on an ITO sheet using DC sputtering with 5 nm and 20 nm thickness and annealed at 300^oC for 20 minutes in the N₂ atmosphere. TiO₂ in the form of the thin film was coated on the already deposited Au layer using a sol-gel spin coating method. Thin films were characterized using tools such as X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and optical absorption spectroscopy. The presence of Au as the subjacent layer in TiO₂ shows enhanced absorption (visible region) due to the plasmonic properties displayed by Au nanoparticles. TiO₂ with subjacent Au layer (5 nm thickness) was found to exhibit eight times higher photoresponse than the pristine sample at 1.0 V/SCE which can be ascribed to the plasmonic effect of gold nanoparticles extending absorption in the visible region of sunlight.

Plasmon

Photoelectrochemical water splitting

Sputtering

Surface plasmon resonance

Sol-gel

Global development in any society is based on demand and supply of energy. It has been realized that existing sources of energy derived from fossil fuels are limited will not be able to fulfill the increasing demand for future generations. Apart from that, decarburizing our energy sources is also an important issue because their continuous use creates well-known hazards that threaten human health and are associated with global climate change, and are posing a great danger for our environment and eventually for the life on our planet (Vayssieres, 2009). World over innovations on finding sustainable and green alternate sources of energy are ongoing relentlessly to reach the level of generating “zero-carbon fuel Hydrogen”. Hydrogen has emerged out as one of the most promising energy carriers in recent times and also gaining increasing attention from the scientific community by virtue of its potency as efficient and carbon-neutral fuel of the future (Joy et al. 2018, Walter et al. 2010, Watanabe et al 2020, Palmer et al. 2020, Dawood et al. 2020).

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) technology is an ideal and promising way to produce hydrogen along with oxygen by harnessing solar energy from water splitting. Scientists world over are pursuing research on the design and synthesis of the most efficient electrode with characteristics like optical function for maximal absorption of solar energy, bandgap lying between 1.6-2.0 eV, corrosion resistance, straddling band edges with H₂O redox potentials, long lifetime of charge carriers, long-term stability in aqueous electrolyte, etc. but so far all these desired characteristic has not been achieved in a single semiconductor(Choudhary et al. 2012).

TiO₂ has been extensively explored for its application in hydrogen generation via photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic pathways referring to its properties like economic viability, environmentally friendly, stability, non-corrosive nature, abundance, etc (Hashimato et al. 2005, Naseri et al. 2010). Owing to a high bandgap of 3.2 eV, TiO₂ absorbs primarily the ultraviolet portion of the solar spectrum and limits its use in the visible spectrum. To enhance its absorption in the visible region various modifications have been adopted like doping, dye sensitization, ion implantation, surface modification, the formation of composite system with other materials including plasmonic nanoparticles (Choi 2006, Subramanyam et al. 2020, Cao et al. 2020).

There are many reports which confirm that the presence of Au nanoparticles enhances the light absorption capability of TiO₂ (Cheng et al. 2020, Barczuk et al. 2020, Li et al. 2014, Nguyen et al. 2021, Abed et al. 2021, Atabaev 2021). Das (2020) sensitized TiO₂ with Au nanoparticles with their different concentrations (0.5-1 wt.%) and obtained the highest photocurrent of 10 µA cm^− 2 with 0.7 wt.%. The presence of Au nanoparticles enabled their photoactivity in the visible region. Xu (2017) obtained 2500 µA cm^− 2 photocurrent density on modifying the nanorod array of TiO₂ with Au nanoparticles at 1.23V vs. RHE on account of increased charge carrier density and light absorption due to plasmonic Au nanoparticles. F. Su (2013) attached plasmonic gold nanoparticles on the branched nanorod array of TiO₂ and obtained photocurrent of 125 µA cm^− 2 under visible light (≥ 420 nm). Due to plasmonic Au nanoparticles, enhancement in light absorption was found as well as promoted charge carrier separation and mobility. Zhan (2014) investigated two different configurations of TiO₂ viz. Au embedded in TiO₂ and Au sitting on TiO₂. They found that Au embedded in TiO₂ outperforms in light absorption and photocatalytic response.Naik(2019) reported high photocatalytic activity in nitrogen-doped Au@TiO₂ core-shell structures fabricated by the hydrothermal method. A hydrogen evolution rate of 4800 µmol per gram per hour was achieved under xenon light irradiation for a time duration of 240 min. The N doping does not bring crystallinity changes in TiO₂ while due to plasmonic Au impurity band is created between the valence band and conduction band of TiO₂. The localized surface plasmon resonance band demonstrated by gold nanoparticles present in the core was found to be responsible for reduced electron-hole pair recombination rate. Theoretical simulations by Gelle (2017) have revealed that a more intense local electrical field is created within the semiconductor near plasmonic metal nanoparticles in Au in TiO₂ configuration in comparison to Au on TiO₂ systems. Thus, an increase in segregation of charge carriers and extended visible light absorption is feasible in plasmonic Au nanoparticles embedded in the semiconductor matrix. High water splitting efficiency of amorphous black TiO₂ was reported by Shi (2018) on the use of plasmonic Au nanoparticles which resulted in photocurrent density of 2.82 mA/cm² at 1.23 V vs RHE which is significantly higher than unmodified photoelectrode of Au-TiO₂. The intermediate energy level in amorphous black TiO₂ improves the charge carrier separation resulting in high photoresponse. Mataresse (2019) designed hierarchial Au/TiO₂ nanostructures in different configurations viz. Au nanoparticles (NPs) as a bottom layer, top layer as well as in integrated assemblies for their application in water splitting and bisphenol A oxidation. They depicted the critical role of Au nanoparticles present at the bottom layer in exploiting the radiations through scattering effect and in turn the photoactivity of TiO₂. J. Jun (2019) fabricated a large-area 3D moth-eye Au NP/TiO₂/Au hierarchical structure by direct printing method and deposition process which showed 2–3 times high photocurrent density in comparison to 2D Au NP/TiO₂/Au absorber in the visible region. Atef (2021)investigated the tuning of Au nanoparticles deposited by a sputtering method on titania nanotube arrays exhibiting high surface area. Au nanoparticles with an optimized diameter of 7–25 nm were distributed on titania nanotube arrays by adjusting the sputtering current. A computational study confirmed the redshift on account of localized surface plasmon resonance exhibited by Au nanoparticles. An eighty-six percent increase in photocurrent was observed in comparison to bare titania nanotube arrays. Liu (2021) fabricated ZnS-PbS quantum dot loaded Au/TiO₂ photocatalysts and obtained absorption from UV to infrared region. The extended absorption reduced charge recombination and hydrogen production rate of 5011 µmol g^− 1h^− 1 was achieved in the presence of a sacrificial reagent. An increase in hydrogen production rate by virtue of enhanced charge separation and conductivity has been demonstrated in ternary CdS/Au/TiO₂ photoanodes by Zhang et al(2021). A photocurrent of 2.78 mA/cm² at 1.23 V vs RHE was achieved which was approximately over twice more than the pristine sample. Verma et al (2016) reported the influence of irradiation by low energy ion beams on Au/TiO₂ thin films. Six times enhancement in photocurrent density was achieved compared with pristine sample on account of the reduced bandgap, charge transfer resistance, and higher value of V_oc (open-circuit voltage).

The investigation on the role of depositing Au nanoparticles of different thicknesses by a sputtering method as a subjacent layer below TiO₂ and its effect on the photoelectrochemical response has not been done so far to the best of our knowledge.

Material and Methods:

The precursor Titanium tetraisopropoxide (TTIP) was procured from Sigma-Aldrich. Analytical grade ethanol and ethanolamine were also used to make the sol. Indium doped tin oxide (SnO₂:In) conducting glass substrate was obtained from SPI supplies, USA.

The schematic presentation of thin film preparation is shown below in Fig. 1.

Sputter coating of Au:

Gold sputter coater system available at IUAC, New Delhi (Quoram Technologies) was used to deposit Au on the cleaned one-third area of ITO glass substrate. The chamber pressure of 0.02 millibar of Argon was maintained to deposit 5 nm and 20 nm thick film and deposition was done for a duration of 30 s. Dry N₂ atmosphere for 20 mins at 300⁰C was provided to anneal the prepared Au thin films.

Preparation of TiO₂ sol:

By mixing 3 mL TTIP in 2 mL of ethanolamine and 20 mL of ethanol, yellowish gel solution was obtained and used further to prepare titanium dioxide thin films. Reaction kinetics between ethanolamine and TTIP was enhanced by stirring the solution for 2 h at room temperature. Now over the plane ITO (for pristine sample) and Au thin films prepared in step 1 (See Fig. 1) (for TiO₂ with Au as a subjacent layer), obtained gel solution was coated uniformly by putting 10 µL solution which was spin-coated at 2500 rotation per minute. Optimized results after repeated experimentation with plane TiO₂ were achieved with 6 layers deposition and therefore successively 6 layers were deposited over the planeITO and Au thin films. After deposition of each layer, films were kept for drying at a hot plate maintained at a temperature of 80^oC for 10 mins. The films thus obtained were kept for 2 h annealing at 450^oC in a muffle furnace (Step 2 and 3, Fig. 1.).

Preparation of electrodes:

All the annealed thin films of pristine and modified TiO₂ were converted into photoelectrodes with an effective surface area of a one-centimeter square for their use in a photoelectrochemical cell by adopting the method reported by Verma et al (2016).

Thin Films Characterization and Photoelectrochemical Measurements:

The obtained thin films were characterized for crystalline phase by the X-ray diffraction study using Cu K𝛼 radiation source of 𝜆 = 1.5418Å with X-ray powder diffractometer (Bruker AXS, Model: D8 Advanced). The crystallite size was calculated using Scherrer’s formula

D = 0.9λ/𝛽cosθ

where λ is the wavelength of X-ray (1.54 Å),𝛽is the full width at half maximum (FWHM), θis the Bragg’s diffraction angle.

The UV- visible absorbance spectra (absorbance vs. wavelength) of TiO₂/Au thin films was obtained using Shimadzu, UV-2450, Japan UV–Visible Spectrophotometer. FE-SEM study was carried out using Carl Zeiss SUPRA 40VP system and EDS maps were obtained from MIRA II LMH (TESCAN).

In the PEC cell, three electrodes (Au/TiO₂: working; platinum mesh: counter and saturated calomel electrode (SCE): reference electrode) were immersed in 13 pH NaOH electrolyte solution. Current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of the electrodes were recorded under dark and light conditions using an Hg-Xe arc lamp (Oriel, USA) with100 mW cm^− 2 intensity and AM 1.5 G illumination. Applied bias was provided in a range of + 1.0 V/SCE to -1.0 V/SCE. The photocurrent density of photoelectrodes can be obtained by subtracting dark current (per square centimeter) from light current (per square centimeter). Mott–Schottky analysis was performed to obtain the flat band potential of the electrodes under dark conditions by varying potential from − 1 V/SCE to 1 V/SCE. Nyquist plots were also obtained to see the charge transfer properties by applying a bias of 1 V (vs SCE) with frequency and amplitude of 0.1 MHz–0.1 Hz and 10 mV respectively under illumination conditions.

XRD patterns obtained for the pristine TiO₂ (A)and with subjacent Au layer of thickness, 5nm (B) and 20nm (C) are presented in Fig. 2 (a). All films show peaks at 2𝜃 = 25.28, 37.80, 48.04, 54.0 and 55.10 corresponding to the (101), (004), (200), (105) and (211) reflections confirming the formation of titanium dioxide with anatase phase of which matches with JCPDS card no. 21-1276 and for metallic Au, 2𝜃 peaks were obtained at 38.18 and 44.392 corresponding to the (111) and (200) reflections which matches with JCPDS card no. 04-0784. The higher thickness of the 20 nm Au layer can be proved from the magnified view of (111) peak of Au showing higher intensity/counts in Fig. 2 (b).

The crystallite size of TiO₂and Au nanoparticles obtained by Scherrer’s formula is as follows:

A) Plane TiO₂ – 19nm

B) TiO₂ with subjacent Au of 5 nm thickness- 16 nm with Au nanoparticles of ̴ 50 nm

C) TiO₂ with subjacent Au of 20 nm thickness- 17 nm with Au nanoparticles of ̴ 100 nm

The UV- Visible absorbance spectra (absorbance vs. wavelength) of the Au/TiO₂ thin films composite system is shown in Fig. 3.

The presence of the subjacent Au layer is responsible for visible light absorption by UV absorbing TiO₂. As can be seen from Fig. 3, 400 nm to 650 nm, plasmonic peaks due to Au nanoparticles are visible. As a consequence of plasmon resonance shown by Au nanoparticles improved absorption in the visible portion of sunlight was achieved (Ghobadi et al. 2020; Tudu et al. 2020). The reason for enhanced absorption in TiO₂ with 20 nm thickness Au subjacent layer is due to larger concentration in comparison to 5 nm thickness. Another reason may be assigned to the bigger particle size of Au nanoparticles in 20 nm thickness which has been confirmed by FESEM analysis. FESEM images are shown in Fig. 4 for Au thin films. Au film with 5nm thickness shows the uniform deposition of Au over the ITO substrate(Fig. 4(a))with a nanoparticles size of 40 to 50 nm while dense and agglomerated deposition of Au nanoparticles of bigger size (> 100 nm) is clearly perceptible in the case of 20 nm thickness Au film (Fig. 4 (b)) and the particle size corroborate with particle size obtained from Scherrer’s equation. The EDS maps corresponding to Au thin films of 5 nm and 20 nm thickness shown in Fig. 4 (d-e) reveal that weight percentage is 4.2% and 12.3% respectively. The compact and dense deposition of titanium dioxide at the surface of Au nanoparticles is apparent in Fig. 4 (c) for TiO₂ with subjacent Au thin film of 5 nm thickness and the corresponding EDS map clearly shows the presence of Ti, O, and Au elements in Fig. 4 (f).

The photocurrent density of the electrodes is shown in Fig. 5 (a). The pristine TiO₂ exhibits the photocurrent density of 435 𝜇A cm⁻² under 1V/SCE bias condition while the TiO₂ with subjacent Au of 5 nm thickness showed approximately eight times enhanced photocurrent of 3348 𝜇A cm⁻² in comparison to pristine TiO₂. TiO₂ with subjacent Au of 20 nm thickness exhibits photocurrent density of 1309 𝜇A cm⁻² at 1V/SCE. In the case of a 5 nm thick Au subjacent layer, onset potential is also achieved earlier in comparison to the other two samples. As can be seen from FESEM images shown in Fig. 4 (b) suggesting that annealing of sputtered Au film of 20 nm thickness resulted in agglomeration of Au nanoparticles with a size greater than 100 nm and such large-sized Au nanoparticles serve well as charge recombination centers. But the higher current in the case of TiO₂ with subjacent Au of 20 nm thickness in comparison to pristine TiO₂is due to Au nanoparticles of higher concentration which promote absorption in the visible region (Fig. 3) but reduced in comparison to 5 nm subjacent layer due to agglomerated Au nanoparticles in 20 nm thickness which acts as charge recombination center and reduces the photoelectrochemical performance (Sittishoktram et al. 2020). Thus, overall enhancement is due to the plasmonic effect of Au showing surface plasmon resonance (SPR) peak in the visible region of the solar spectrum i.e. 400–650 nm.

In addition to this, Mott-Schottky plots were obtained in dark conditions showing flat band potential of all electrodes. A more negative value of flat band potential (0.90 V/SCE) in TiO₂ with Au subjacent layer of 5 nm thickness confirms the reduced charge recombination rate. A positive value of the slope in MS curves demonstrates the n-type conductivity of the semiconductor thin films. Further, the Nyquist plots also confirm the least charge transfer resistance in the same sample and the findings corroborate with photocurrent density and flat band potential measurements.

Besides the role of Au nanoparticles in enhancing absorption of TiO₂ in visible light, the position of the conduction band of TiO₂ is above the Fermi level of Au which promotes the movement of charge carriers from TiO₂ to the subjacent Au layer and then towards the counter electrode through an external circuit in PEC cell to generate hydrogen (Verma et al, 2016).

A simple method has been chosen to deposit the titanium dioxide thin films on ITO using a sol-gel technique. Depositing Au using sputtering in the subjacent configuration is the novel way of studying the Au/TiO₂ composite system. To behave as plasmons, metal nanoparticle preparation is an important criterion as the properties of plasmon depend on their shape and size, and therefore the shift in surface plasmon resonance (SPR) peak also depends on these properties. In the present study, Au was deposited to increase the absorption of titanium dioxide in the visible portion of sunlight. Enhancement in the optical absorption in the visible region was observed and that also accounts for increased photoresponse of the Au/TiO₂ system. Higher photocurrent obtained in the case of subjacent Au with 5 nm thickness film has been supported by the flat band potential with more negative magnitude and reduced charge transfer resistance at the electrode-electrolyte interface.

Authors Contribution

Anupam Srivastav: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing- Original draft preparation, Investigation Neeraj Kumar Biswas: Visualization, Data Curation. Sakshi Saxena: Data curation, Editing, Formal analysis. Anuradha Verma: Conceptualization, Visualization. Abhishek Srivastava: Software, Validation. Sahab Dass: Supervision, Research Activity Planning, Writing- Reviewing and Editing.

Acknowledgments

The author (s) would like to thank IUAC, New Delhi for FE-SEM characterization. We thank financial support by MNRE, Govt. of India under the project (103/241/2015-NT).

Funding Declaration

This work is supported under project (103/241/2015-NT) funded by MNRE, Govt. of India

Data Availability

The data used to support the findings of this study are included within the article and no additional source data are required.

Competing Interests Statement

The authors declare no financial and non-financial competing interests.

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No competing interests reported.

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You are reading this latest preprint version

Role of Subjacent Plasmon Layer in Improving Photoelectrochemical Response of Metal Oxide Photoelectrodes

Status:

Version 1

Abstract

Figures

Introduction

Experimental

Material and Methods:

Sputter coating of Au:

Preparation of TiO₂ sol:

Preparation of electrodes:

Thin Films Characterization and Photoelectrochemical Measurements:

Results And Discussion

Conclusions

Declarations

References

Additional Declarations

Supplementary Files

Status:

Version 1

Role of Subjacent Plasmon Layer in Improving Photoelectrochemical Response of Metal Oxide Photoelectrodes

Status:

Version 1

Abstract

Figures

Introduction

Experimental

Material and Methods:

Sputter coating of Au:

Preparation of TiO2 sol:

Preparation of electrodes:

Thin Films Characterization and Photoelectrochemical Measurements:

Results And Discussion

Conclusions

Declarations

References

Additional Declarations

Supplementary Files

Status:

Version 1

Preparation of TiO₂ sol: