Valence band offset of MgO/TiO2 (rutile) heterojunction measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

The valence band offset (VBO) of MgO/TiO2 (rutile) heterojunction has been directly measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The VBO of the heterojunction is determined to be 1.6 ± 0.3 eV and the conduction band offset (CBO) is deduced to be 3.2 ± 0.3 eV, indicating that the heterojunction exhibits a type-I band alignment. These large values are sufficient for MgO to act as tunneling barriers in TiO2 based devices. The accurate determination of the valence and conduction band offsets is important for use of MgO as a buffer layer in TiO2 based field-effect transistors and dye-sensitized solar cells.