CdS/TiO2 photoanodes via solution ion transfer method for highly efficient solar hydrogen generation

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) is a unique semiconductingmaterial for solar hydrogen generation applications with a tunable, narrowbandgap that straddles water redox potentials. However, its potential towards efficient solar hydrogen generation has not yet been realized due to low photon-tocurrent conversions, high charge carrier recombination and the lack of controlled preparation methods. In this work, we demonstrate a highly efficient CdS/TiO2 heterostructured photoelectrode using atomic layer deposition and solution ion transfer reactions. Enabled by thewell-controlled deposition of CdS nanocrystals onTiO2 inverse opal (TiIO)nanostructures using the proposed method, a saturation photocurrent density of 9.1 mA cm is realizedwhich is the highest ever reported for CdS-based photoelectrodes.We further demonstrate that the passivation of a CdS surface with an ultrathin amorphous layer (∼1.5 nm) of TiO2 improves the charge collection efficiency at low applied potentials paving theway for unassisted solar hydrogen generation.