Sputtered NiOx Films for Stabilization of p+n-InP Photoanodes for Solar-Driven Water Oxidation

Sun, Ke; Kuang, Yanjin; Verlage, Erik; Brunschwig, Bruce S.; Tu, Charles W.; Lewis, Nathan S.

doi:10.1002/aenm.201402276

Title: Sputtered NiO_x Films for Stabilization of p⁺n-InP Photoanodes for Solar-Driven Water Oxidation

Journal Article · Wed Mar 18 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Advanced Energy Materials

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.201402276· OSTI ID:1633791

Sun, Ke ^[1]; Kuang, Yanjin ^[2]; Verlage, Erik ^[1]; Brunschwig, Bruce S. ^[1]; Tu, Charles W. ^[2]; Lewis, Nathan S. ^[1]

California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States)
Univ. of California, San Diego, CA (United States)

A reactively sputtered NiO_x film has been used here to stabilize a buried-junction p⁺n-InP photoanode from anodic dissolution/corrosion for > 48 h of continuous light-driven evolution of O₂(g) in 1.0 M KOH(aq) as well as in an aqueous electrolyte buffered at near-neutral pH. Under 1-Sun Air Mass (AM) 1.5G simulated solar illumination, NiO_x-protected p⁺n-InP photoanodes produced photocurrent-onset potentials of -370 ± 10 mV referenced to the equilibrium potential for evolution of O₂(g), light-limited photocurrent densities of 20.5 ± 0.3 mA cm^-2, and photocurrent densities of 17.5 ± 0.4 mA cm^-2 at the equilibrium potential for evolution of O₂(g), while evolving O₂(g) from 1.0 M KOH(aq) with 100% Faradaic yield. Furthermore, during 48 h of continuous operation, the total charge passed through the electrode, ~4600 C cm^-2, exceeded by a factor of at least 10 the amount of charge required to anodically dissolve or oxidize the entire InP substrate.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Cite

Export

Save

Research Organization:: California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Science Foundation (NSF); Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation; US Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR)

Grant/Contract Number:: SC0004993; DMR‐0907652; DMR‐1106369; FA9550‐10‐1‐0572

OSTI ID:: 1633791

Journal Information:: Advanced Energy Materials, Vol. 5, Issue 11; ISSN 1614-6832

Publisher:: WileyCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Citation Metrics:

Cited by: 83 works

Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (33)

Stabilization of n ‐type semiconductors to photoanodic dissolution: II–VI and III–V compound semiconductors and recent results for n ‐type silicon Wrighton, Mark S.; Bolts, Jeffrey M.; Bocarsly, Andrew B. Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology, Vol. 15, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1116/1.569801	journal	July 1978
Microstructural evolution during film growth Petrov, I.; Barna, P. B.; Hultman, L. Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology A: Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films, Vol. 21, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1116/1.1601610	journal	September 2003
Characterization of n-Type Semiconducting Indium Phosphide Photoelectrodes Ellis, Arthur B. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 124, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2133118	journal	January 1977
A taxonomy for solar fuels generators Nielander, Adam C.; Shaner, Matthew R.; Papadantonakis, Kimberly M. Energy & Environmental Science, Vol. 8, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1039/C4EE02251C	journal	January 2015
Fundamental structure forming phenomena of polycrystalline films and the structure zone models Barna, P. B.; Adamik, M. Thin Solid Films, Vol. 317, Issue 1-2 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0040-6090(97)00503-8	journal	April 1998
Solar‐cell characteristics and interfacial chemistry of indium‐tin‐oxide/indium phosphide and indium‐tin‐oxide/gallium arsenide junctions Bachmann, K. J.; Schreiber, H.; Sinclair, W. R. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 50, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.326337	journal	May 1979
Theory of the InP shallow homojunction solar cell Goradia, Chandra; Geier, James V.; Weinberg, Irving Solar Cells, Vol. 25, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/0379-6787(88)90063-4	journal	December 1988
Optical Constants of Water in the 200-nm to 200-μm Wavelength Region Hale, George M.; Querry, Marvin R. Applied Optics, Vol. 12, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1364/AO.12.000555	journal	January 1973
Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Production on InP Nanowire Arrays with Molybdenum Sulfide Electrocatalysts Gao, Lu; Cui, Yingchao; Wang, Jia Nano Letters, Vol. 14, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1021/nl404540f	journal	June 2014
Stabilization of n-cadmium telluride photoanodes for water oxidation to O ₂ (g) in aqueous alkaline electrolytes using amorphous TiO ₂ films formed by atomic-layer deposition Lichterman, Michael F.; Carim, Azhar I.; McDowell, Matthew T. Energy Environ. Sci., Vol. 7, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1039/C4EE01914H	journal	January 2014
Electrochemical Passivation of Homoepitaxial InP (100) Thin Films for Light Induced Hydrogen Evolution: A Synchrotron Radiation Photoelectron Spectroscopy Study Muñoz, Andres G.; Heine, Christian; Klemm, Hagen W. ECS Transactions, Vol. 35, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1149/1.3567746	journal	April 2011
Anodic Formation and Characterization of Nanoporous InP in Aqueous KOH Electrolytes O’Dwyer, C.; Buckley, D. N.; Sutton, D. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 153, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2354441	journal	January 2006
Pores in III–V Semiconductors Föll, H.; Langa, S.; Carstensen, J. Advanced Materials, Vol. 15, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.200390043	journal	February 2003
Transition metal diffusion in InP: Photoluminescence investigation Skolnick, M. S.; Foulkes, E. J.; Tuck, B. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 55, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.333338	journal	April 1984
p-Type InP Nanopillar Photocathodes for Efficient Solar-Driven Hydrogen Production Lee, Min Hyung; Takei, Kuniharu; Zhang, Junjun Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Vol. 51, Issue 43 https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201203174	journal	September 2012
Efficient Solar to Chemical Conversion: 12% Efficient Photoassisted Electrolysis in the [ $p$ -type InP(Ru)]/HCl-KCl/Pt(Rh) Cell Heller, Adam; Vadimsky, Richard G. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 46, Issue 17 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.46.1153	journal	April 1981
Investigation of oxide growth and stability on n-GaAs and n-InP by coupling transient photocurrent and surface analysis Gérard, I.; Simon, N.; Etcheberry, A. Applied Surface Science, Vol. 175-176 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-4332(01)00083-6	journal	May 2001
Sputtered oxide/indium phosphide junctions and indium phosphide surfaces Tsai, Ming-Jong; Fahrenbruch, Alan L.; Bube, Richard H. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 51, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.327930	journal	January 1980
Amorphous TiO2 coatings stabilize Si, GaAs, and GaP photoanodes for efficient water oxidation Hu, S.; Shaner, M. R.; Beardslee, J. A. Science, Vol. 344, Issue 6187 https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1251428	journal	May 2014
Stabilization of Si microwire arrays for solar-driven H ₂ O oxidation to O ₂ (g) in 1.0 M KOH(aq) using conformal coatings of amorphous TiO ₂ Shaner, Matthew R.; Hu, Shu; Sun, Ke Energy & Environmental Science, Vol. 8, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1039/C4EE03012E	journal	January 2015
Propagation of nanopores during anodic etching of n-InP in KOH Lynch, Robert P.; Quill, Nathan; O'Dwyer, Colm Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, Vol. 15, Issue 36 https://doi.org/10.1039/c3cp52253a	journal	January 2013
Enabling Silicon for Solar-Fuel Production Sun, Ke; Shen, Shaohua; Liang, Yongqi Chemical Reviews, Vol. 114, Issue 17 https://doi.org/10.1021/cr300459q	journal	January 2014
p / n InP homojunction solar cells with a modified contacting scheme by liquid phase epitaxy Choi, K. Y.; Shen, C. C. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 63, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.339980	journal	February 1988
Photoelectrochemistry of Nickel Hydroxide Thin Films Carpenter, Michael K. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 136, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1149/1.2096777	journal	January 1989
Stable solar-driven oxidation of water by semiconducting photoanodes protected by transparent catalytic nickel oxide films Sun, Ke; Saadi, Fadl H.; Lichterman, Michael F. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 112, Issue 12, p. 3612-3617 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1423034112	journal	March 2015
Efficient photovoltaic devices for InP semiconductor/liqud junctions Heben, Michael J.; Kumar, Amit; Zheng, Chong Nature, Vol. 340, Issue 6235 https://doi.org/10.1038/340621a0	journal	August 1989
11.5% solar conversion efficiency in the photocathodically protected p ‐InP/V ³⁺ ‐V ²⁺ ‐HCI/C semiconductor liquid junction cell Heller, Adam; Miller, Barry; Thiel, F. A. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 38, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.92307	journal	February 1981
Simultaneous Observation of Current Oscillations and Porous Film Growth during Anodization of InP O'Dwyer, C.; Buckley, D. N.; Newcomb, S. B. Langmuir, Vol. 21, Issue 18 https://doi.org/10.1021/la050936r	journal	August 2005
Hydrogen evolution at a platinum-modified indium phosphide photoelectrode: improvement of current-voltage characteristics by hydrogen chloride etching Kobayashi, Hikaru; Mizuno, Fumiaki; Nakato, Yoshihiro The Journal of Physical Chemistry, Vol. 95, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1021/j100155a062	journal	January 1991
<italic>Ab initio</italic> modeling of water–semiconductor interfaces for photocatalytic water splitting: role of surface oxygen and hydroxyl Wood, Brandon C. Journal of Photonics for Energy, Vol. 1, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1117/1.3625563	journal	January 2011
Sunlight absorption in water – efficiency and design implications for photoelectrochemical devices Döscher, H.; Geisz, J. F.; Deutsch, T. G. Energy Environ. Sci., Vol. 7, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1039/C4EE01753F	journal	January 2014
Current-Line Oriented Pore Formation in n-InP Anodized in KOH Quill, N.; Lynch, R. P.; O'Dwyer, C. ECS Transactions, Vol. 50, Issue 37 https://doi.org/10.1149/05037.0143ecst	journal	April 2013
Experiment and theory of ‘transparent’ metal films Porter, John D.; Heller, Adam; Aspnes, David E. Nature, Vol. 313, Issue 6004 https://doi.org/10.1038/313664a0	journal	February 1985

Cited By (18)

Defect-Enhanced Charge Separation and Transfer within Protection Layer/Semiconductor Structure of Photoanodes Zheng, Jianyun; Lyu, Yanhong; Xie, Chao Advanced Materials, Vol. 30, Issue 31 https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201801773	journal	June 2018
A Photoelectrochemical Device with Dynamic Interface Energetics: Understanding of Structural and Physical Specificities and Improvement of Performance and Stability Jung, Jin‐Young; Yu, Jin‐Young; Yoon, Sanghwa Advanced Sustainable Systems, Vol. 2, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1002/adsu.201800083	journal	August 2018
Rational Design and Construction of Cocatalysts for Semiconductor-Based Photo-Electrochemical Oxygen Evolution: A Comprehensive Review Xu, Xiao-Ting; Pan, Lun; Zhang, Xiangwen Advanced Science, Vol. 6, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.201801505	journal	November 2018
Strategies for Semiconductor/Electrocatalyst Coupling toward Solar‐Driven Water Splitting Thalluri, Sitaramanjaneya Mouli; Bai, Lichen; Lv, Cuncai Advanced Science, Vol. 7, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.201902102	journal	March 2020
Photoelectrocatalytic Materials for Solar Water Splitting Yao, Tingting; An, Xiurui; Han, Hongxian Advanced Energy Materials, Vol. 8, Issue 21 https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.201800210	journal	May 2018
Single-Crystal Semiconductors with Narrow Band Gaps for Solar Water Splitting Wang, Tuo; Gong, Jinlong Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Vol. 54, Issue 37 https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201503346	journal	July 2015
Modeling, Simulation, and Implementation of Solar-Driven Water-Splitting Devices Xiang, Chengxiang; Weber, Adam Z.; Ardo, Shane Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Vol. 55, Issue 42 https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201510463	journal	October 2016
Kinetic Competition between Water‐Splitting and Photocorrosion Reactions in Photoelectrochemical Devices Nandjou, Fredy; Haussener, Sophia ChemSusChem, Vol. 12, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.201802558	journal	November 2018
Recent Advances in Earth-Abundant Heterogeneous Electrocatalysts for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting Hou, Yang; Zhuang, Xiaodong; Feng, Xinliang Small Methods, Vol. 1, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1002/smtd.201700090	journal	April 2017
Stable Hydrogen Production from Water on an NIR-Responsive Photocathode under Harsh Conditions Kaneko, Hiroyuki; Minegishi, Tsutomu; Higashi, Tomohiro Small Methods, Vol. 2, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1002/smtd.201800018	journal	March 2018
Developing a scalable artificial photosynthesis technology through nanomaterials by design Lewis, Nathan S. Nature Nanotechnology, Vol. 11, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2016.194	journal	December 2016
An efficient and stable photoelectrochemical system with 9% solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency via InGaP/GaAs double junction Varadhan, Purushothaman; Fu, Hui-Chun; Kao, Yu-Cheng Nature Communications, Vol. 10, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12977-x	journal	November 2019
Interface engineering of the photoelectrochemical performance of Ni-oxide-coated n-Si photoanodes by atomic-layer deposition of ultrathin films of cobalt oxide Zhou, Xinghao; Liu, Rui; Sun, Ke Energy & Environmental Science, Vol. 8, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1039/c5ee01687h	journal	January 2015
Performance and failure modes of Si anodes patterned with thin-film Ni catalyst islands for water oxidation Sun, Ke; Ritzert, Nicole L.; John, Jimmy Sustainable Energy & Fuels, Vol. 2, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1039/c7se00583k	journal	January 2018
Stabilization of GaAs photoanodes by in situ deposition of nickel-borate surface catalysts as hole trapping sites Jiang, Chaoran; Wu, Jiang; Moniz, Savio J. A. Sustainable Energy & Fuels, Vol. 3, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1039/c8se00265g	journal	January 2019
Harnessing hierarchical architectures to trap light for efficient photoelectrochemical cells Tang, Songtao; Qiu, Weitao; Xiao, Shuang Energy & Environmental Science, Vol. 13, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1039/c9ee02986a	journal	January 2020
A nanostructured NiO/cubic SiC p–n heterojunction photoanode for enhanced solar water splitting Jian, Jingxin; Shi, Yuchen; Ekeroth, Sebastian Journal of Materials Chemistry A, Vol. 7, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1039/c9ta00020h	journal	January 2019
TiO ₂ /BiVO ₄ Nanowire Heterostructure Photoanodes Based on Type II Band Alignment Resasco, Joaquin; Zhang, Hao; Kornienko, Nikolay ACS Central Science, Vol. 2, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1021/acscentsci.5b00402	journal	February 2016

Figures / Tables (4)

Similar Records

Interface engineering of the photoelectrochemical performance of Ni-oxide-coated n-Si photoanodes by atomic-layer deposition of ultrathin films of cobalt oxide

Journal Article · Wed Jul 15 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Energy & Environmental Science · OSTI ID:1633791

Zhou, Xinghao; Liu, Rui; Sun, Ke; +10 more

Solar-Driven Reduction of 1 atm CO₂ to Formate at 10% Energy-Conversion Efficiency by Use of a TiO₂ -Protected III-V Tandem Photoanode in Conjunction with a Bipolar Membrane and a Pd/C Cathode Electrocatalyst

Journal Article · Tue Apr 25 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · ECS Transactions (Online) · OSTI ID:1633791

Zhou, Xinghao; Liu, Rui; Sun, Ke; +5 more

570 mV photovoltage, stabilized n-Si/CoO_x heterojunction photoanodes fabricated using atomic layer deposition

Journal Article · Fri Jan 08 00:00:00 EST 2016 · Energy & Environmental Science · OSTI ID:1633791

Zhou, Xinghao; Liu, Rui; Sun, Ke; +3 more

Related Subjects

25 ENERGY STORAGE
functional catalysts
InP photoanodes
photoanode protection
solar‐driven water oxidation

Title: Sputtered NiOx Films for Stabilization of p+n-InP Photoanodes for Solar-Driven Water Oxidation

Citation Formats