Wall thickness and charge transport properties of nano-honeycomb TiO2 structures prepared by photoetching

Time- and frequency-resolved photoelectrochemical studies have been performed on nano-honeycomb porous TiO2 electrodes prepared by photoelectrochemical etching (photoetching). The remaining walls in the porous layers prepared by photoetching are found to become approximately as thin as double the thickness of the space charge layer of the material. Therefore, slow electron transport by diffusion in the walls contributes to the photocurrent generation in addition to the fast transport by field-driven migration in the bulky part of the electrode, as noticed from the appearance of a slow component in the photocurrent transient response. Addition of electron donors such as monoethanolamine (MEOA) to the electrolyte further enhances the contribution of the electron diffusion to the overall current response. The results of intensity modulated photocurrent spectroscopy (IMPS) measurements are dominated by the bulky part of the electrode, reflecting the RC times of the cells.