Issue 8, 2016

Charge transfer processes at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface for solar fuel production: insight from impedance spectroscopy

Abstract

Knowledge of the nature of charge transfer processes at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface is crucial for the optimization of semiconductors used for solar fuel production. In the literature, there are two types of charge transfer mechanisms: (i) direct hole transfer from the valence band and (ii) indirect hole transfer via surface states. In this paper, we discuss both processes in the steady state regime through full drift-diffusion simulations considering the concomitant influence of the electric field and surface states at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface. We discuss the role of surface states and valence band holes in the photo-anodic current. We subsequently analyze both hole transfer processes in a dynamic regime via the impedance spectroscopy (IS) method. We provide a solid criterion to discriminate both mechanisms and discuss some experimental examples from the literature.

Graphical abstract: Charge transfer processes at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface for solar fuel production: insight from impedance spectroscopy

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
01 May 2015
Accepted
24 Jun 2015
First published
24 Jun 2015

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016,4, 2873-2879

Author version available

Charge transfer processes at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface for solar fuel production: insight from impedance spectroscopy

L. Bertoluzzi, P. Lopez-Varo, J. A. Jiménez Tejada and J. Bisquert, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2016, 4, 2873 DOI: 10.1039/C5TA03210E

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