AgSbS2 modified ZnO nanotube arrays for photoelectrochemical water splitting

• Large-scale, vertically aligned AgSbS2 modified ZnO nanotube arrays were directly fabricated on ITO.
• The photocurrent density of AgSbS2 modified ZnO film was up to 5.08 mA cm−2.
• High photocurrent density due to enhanced absorption spectrum, charges transmission and appropriate energy gap.

Large-scale, vertically aligned AgSbS2 modified ZnO nanotube arrays have been fabricated directly on conducting glass substrates (ITO) via a facile, versatile and low-cost hydrothermal chemical process by using ZnO nanorods as reactive templates. This method is easy to be controlled to develop uniform morphology, and it can be generalized to fabricate other ternary sensitizer nanomaterial for PEC water splitting. In this work, we present a novel ternary sensitizer miargyrite AgSbS2 for optimized ZnO, and the ZnO/AgSbS2 nanoarrays film was applied on photoelectrochemical (PEC) photoelectrodes. Strikingly, the photocurrent density of this electrode was up to 5.08 mA cm−2 at 0.096 V versus Ag/AgCl. The excellent PEC properties stems from the enhanced absorption spectrum, high speed of photo-induced charges transmission velocity and appropriate energy gap of coupled nanostructures. Furthermore, this work demonstrates a promising low-cost method for preparing ternary sensitizer modified ZnO nanoarrays as PEC electodes for hydrogen production by water splitting.

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