Tailoring morphology symmetry of bismuth vanadate photocatalysts for efficient charge separation

Although spatial charge separation between different facets of semiconductor crystals has been recognized as a general strategy in photocatalysis, the vital role of crystal morphology symmetry in charge separation properties still remains elusive. Herein,taking monoclinic bismuth vanadate(BiVO_(4)) as a platform, we found distinct charge separation difference via rationally tailoring the morphology symmetry from octahedral to truncated octahedral crystals. For octahedral BiVO_(4), photogenerated electrons and holes can be separated between edges and quasi-equivalent facets. However, as for truncated octahedral crystals,photogenerated electrons tend to transfer to {010} facets while photogenerated holes prefer to accumulate on {120} facets, thus realizing the spatial separation of photogenerated charge between different facets. Morphology tailoring of BiVO_(4) crystals leads to a significantly improved photogenerated charge separation efficiency and photocatalytic water oxidation activity. The built-in electric field for driving the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes is considered to be modulated by tuning the morphology symmetry of BiVO_(4) crystals. This work discloses the significant roles of morphology symmetry in photogenerated charge separation and facilitates the rational design of artificial photocatalysts.