Thin films composed of irregular micro-block arrays of closely packed CdS nanoparticles for enhanced photoelectrochemical performance

Abstract

CdS is a very important semiconductor, and various micro-/nano-structured forms of CdS have been fabricated with the aim of improving its photoelectrochemical performance. We report here for the first time the preparation of a CdS film consisting of irregular micro-block arrays of closely packed CdS nanoparticles. It performs outstandingly well as a photoanode because it possesses the advantages of both arrays and nanoparticles. This CdS film is prepared simply by a combination of reaction and assembly at the gas/liquid interface (RAG/L) with successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR), requiring no templates or expensive equipment. In this approach, the nanopores in the film of loosely aggregated CdS nanoparticles produced by RAG/L are filled by CdS nanoparticles via SILAR, forming a compact CdS film. Network micro-cracks form in the compact CdS film due to calcination caused by differential thermal expansion compared with the substrate, and these cut the CdS film into irregular micro-block arrays. This micro-/nano-structure in the prepared CdS film improves its capacity for visible light absorption, facilitates the generation/separation of excited charges, and enhances mass transfer. In an alkaline solution of methanol, the prepared CdS film exhibits the highest saturation photocurrent density (6.5mAcm−2) ever reported on CdS-based photoanodes under visible light illumination.