Ultrathin Lutetium Oxide Film as an Epitaxial Hole-Blocking Layer for Crystalline Bismuth Vanadate Water Splitting Photoanodes

Zhang, Wenrui; Yan, Danhua; Tong, Xiao; Liu, Mingzhao

doi:10.1002/adfm.201705512

Title: Ultrathin Lutetium Oxide Film as an Epitaxial Hole-Blocking Layer for Crystalline Bismuth Vanadate Water Splitting Photoanodes

Journal Article · Mon Jan 08 00:00:00 EST 2018 · Advanced Functional Materials

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.201705512· OSTI ID:1425068

^[1]; Yan, Danhua ^[1]; Tong, Xiao ^[1]; Liu, Mingzhao ^[1]

Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)

Abstract Here a novel ultrathin lutetium oxide (Lu ₂ O ₃ ) interlayer is integrated with crystalline bismuth vanadate (BiVO ₄ ) thin film photoanodes to facilitate carrier transport through atomic‐scale interface control. The epitaxial Lu ₂ O ₃ interlayer fabricated by pulsed laser deposition features very few structural defects at the back contact of the heterojunction, and forms a unique band alignment that favors photohole blocking. An optimized interlayer thickness of 1.4 nm significantly enhances charge separation efficiency and photocurrent. Combined with photoelectrochemical characterization, solid‐state electronic, and localized conductive atomic force microscopy measurements, it is revealed that the Lu ₂ O ₃ interlayer modulates the electronic conduction pathways along structural grain boundaries and determines the overall device performance. This study sheds light on the nature of interface‐engineered carrier transport for efficient photoelectrode heterostructure design.

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Research Organization:: Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0012704

OSTI ID:: 1425068

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1416395

Report Number(s):: BNL-203208-2018-JAAM; TRN: US1802028

Journal Information:: Advanced Functional Materials, Vol. 28, Issue 10; ISSN 1616-301X

Publisher:: WileyCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 36 works

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Atomic Layer Deposition of Space‐Efficient SnO ₂ Underlayers for BiVO ₄ Host–Guest Architectures for Photoassisted Water Splitting Lamm, Benjamin; Zhou, Lite; Rao, Pratap ChemSusChem, Vol. 12, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.201802566	journal	November 2018
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Atomic Layer Deposition of Space‐Efficient SnO ₂ Underlayers for BiVO ₄ Host–Guest Architectures for Photoassisted Water Splitting Lamm, Benjamin; Zhou, Lite; Rao, Pratap ChemSusChem, Vol. 12, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.201901063	journal	November 2018

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