Enhanced visible-light photovoltaic and photocatalytic performances of SnSe1-xSx nanostructures

Abstract

In this paper, the pristine SnSe and SnSe1 − xSx nanostructures with different concentrations of sulfur were synthesized by a simple, fast, environmentally-friendly, and inexpensive co-precipitation method. Then, the effect of sulfur concentration on the photovoltaic and photocatalytic properties of the nanostructures was investigated. The results show that in presence of sulfur and its concentration change, the crystallite size and the strain of nanostructures change. Also, among nanostructures, S(6%)-doped SnSe nanostructure indicates the significant photocatalytic activity in the degradation of organic dyes and the significant photovoltaic response under visible light. These results can be due to the reducing crystal defects, the reducing electron-hole recombination, and the improving textural characteristics, which lead to reducing the agglomeration of nanostructures and thus increase the absorption of optical photons and more production of electron-hole pairs. Also, the study of photovoltaic properties shows that the highest photocurrent density and lowest diode coefficient belong to S(6%)-doped SnSe nanostructure.