The photocatalytic performance study of La doping AgNbO3 by electronic structure and the carrier lifetime

Abstract

AgNbO3 semiconductor have attracted much attention due to its unique visible-light photosensitivity. The first-principles calculations were used to investigate the relationship among the structural evolution, electronic structure, optical properties and carrier lifetime of La doped Ag1-xLaxNbO3. The addition of La enlarges the cell volume and inhibits the lattice distortion, which promotes the separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. After La doping, the La 4d state gradually extends to the fermi level, resulting in more electrons to participate in the reduction reaction. The light absorption of Ag1-xLaxNbO3 at visible range and the utilization capacity of sunlight are enhanced. The me* of Ag1-xLaxNbO3 is reduced, which is conducive to the charge transfer and guarantees the electronic mobility and carrier lifetime in the compound. Our study demonstrats that La doping can effectively improve the photocatalytic performance of AgNbO3, which provides a reference for the experimental research of photocatalytic water decomposition.