Growth of ZnSexO1–x Nanorods and Their Photoelectrochemical Properties

Abstract

Photoelectrochemical water splitting symbolizes an eco-friendly sustainable way for renewable hydrogen and oxygen production. Increasing the photoelectrode stability and efficiency is one of the important tasks in PEC performances. In this present work, we have successfully synthesized pure ZnO and ZnSe1 – xOx nanorods by a chemical vapor deposition method. XRD measurements confirmed the formation of the wurtzite structure of ZnO and ZnSe1 – xOx nanorods. All the prepared samples confirmed the formation of the nanorod structure by employing SEM studies. Notably, in particular, the photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity was studied by linear sweep voltammetry (I–V) and photoconversion efficiency (η) analysis. The experimental results showed that the ZnO/0.2Se nanorods exhibit better PEC performance due to their strong visible light absorption. The selenium (Se) composite plays a vital role in boosting their PEC performance and photoelectrode efficiency. Furthermore, the optimized photoanode of ZnO/0.2Se exhibits high efficiency, which was 2.73 times greater than that of the pure ZnO. Therefore, the ZnSe1 – xOx nanorod is a promising alternative material for PEC applications.