Linker-assisted assembly of 1D TiO2 nanobelts/3D CdS nanospheres hybrid heterostructure as efficient visible light photocatalyst

• 1D TiO2 nanobelts (TNBs)/3D CdS nanospheres (NSPs) hybrid nanostructure was fabricated by a facile and efficient electrostatic self-assembly approach.
• Well-defined TNBs/CdS NSPs heterostructure exhibits significantly enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic performances.
• Surface charge tuning of semiconductor affords a new synthetic route for preparation of various hybrid composites for photocatalytic applications.

Controllable synthesis of one-dimensional (1D)/three-dimensional (3D) nanocomposites with promising photocatalytic performances has been attracting ever-increasing research attention in recent years. Here, we report the self-assembly of TiO2 nanobelts/CdS nanospheres (TNBs/CdS NSPs) photocatalyst via the electrostatic interaction of positively charged CdS nanospheres (CdS NSPs) with negatively charged TiO2 nanobelts in aqueous phase. The as-formed TNBs/CdS NSPs nanocomposite exhibited significantly enhanced visible-light-driven photocatalytic activities in comparison with the single counterpart (TNBs and CdS NSPs) owing to the formation of well-defined heterojunction between TNBs and CdS NSPs, thus leading to much enhanced light absorption and prolonged lifetime of photogenerated charge carriers. It is anticipated that our work could provide an efficient synthetic approach to design a large variety of 1D/3D photocatalysts for diverse photocatalytic applications.

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