Fabrication of CdS nanotubes assisted by the template-free electrochemical synthesis method and their photo-electrochemical application

A cadmium sulfide nanotube (CdS NT) was successfully fabricated by a two-step route consisting of the template-free electrochemical deposition of cadmium hydroxide films at 298 K and their subsequent sulfurization by S2− ions. Photo-electrochemical solar cells using a combination of CdS NT, polysulfide (Sx2−/xS2−) and carbon electrode exhibited high IPCE (ca. 80%) at 510 nm due to efficient light-harvesting performance.

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► Facile fabrication of a cadmium sulfide nanotube (CdS NT).
► Template-free electrochemical deposition of cadmium hydroxide at 298 K.
► Utilization of carbon electrode as a counter electrode instead of Pt.
► High performance of photo-electrochemical solar cells.