CdS/CdSe co-sensitized 3D SnO2/TiO2 sea urchin-like nanotube arrays as an efficient photoanode for photoelectrochemical hydrogen generation

Abstract

In this paper, we report a novel electrode of 3D ordered CdS/CdSe co-sensitized sea urchin-like SnO₂/TiO₂ nanotube arrays for photoelectrochemical hydrogen production. This novel photoanode presents excellent PEC performance, yielding a maximum photocurrent density of ∼6 mA cm⁻² at 1.4 V vs. RHE under light illumination AM 1.5 (100 mW cm⁻²), which is due to the 3D structural effect of the SnO₂/TiO₂ sea urchin nanotubes, stepwise cascade band alignment between SnO₂/TiO₂ and CdS/CdSe as well as the improvement of light harvesting in the visible region.