Zinc oxide (ZnO) and niobium oxide (NbOx) with a nano-island structure were deposited by a sputtering method on Al-coated glass substrates. Cells with a (ZnO or NbOx)/Al/glass|KNO3aq.|Al/ glass structure were assemble...Zinc oxide (ZnO) and niobium oxide (NbOx) with a nano-island structure were deposited by a sputtering method on Al-coated glass substrates. Cells with a (ZnO or NbOx)/Al/glass|KNO3aq.|Al/ glass structure were assembled, and electrochemical and photoelectrochemical properties were evaluated. The ZnO and NbOx electrodes had higher electrode potentials than the counter Al/glass electrode, and electron flows from the counter electrode to the ZnO and NbOx electrodes through the external circuit were commonly confirmed. In the ZnO-based cell, only faint photocurrent generation was seen, where Zn and Al elution from the ZnO electrode was found. In the NbOxbased cell, however, stable generation of electricity was successfully achieved, and electrode corrosion was not recognized even in microscopic observations. A photoelectrochemical conversion model was proposed based on potential-pH diagrams. In the case of nano-island structures formed at shorter NbOx deposition time, it was concluded that the photoelectrochemical reactions, which were proceeded in the immediate vicinity of the boundary among nano-islands, substrate, and electrolyte solution, were predominant for the photoelectrochemical conversion, and in the case of film structures with longer deposition time, the predominant reactions took place at the film surface.展开更多
Employing the alkaline water electrolysis system to generate hydrogen holds great prospects but still poses significant challenges,particularly for the construction of hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)catalysts operati...Employing the alkaline water electrolysis system to generate hydrogen holds great prospects but still poses significant challenges,particularly for the construction of hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)catalysts operating at ampere-level current density.Herein,the unique Ru and RuP_(2)dual nano-islands are deliberately implanted on N-doped carbon substrate(denoted as Ru-RuP_(2)/NC),in which a built-in electric field(BEF)is spontaneously generated between Ru-RuP_(2)dual nano-islands driven by their work function difference.Experimental and theoretical results unveil that such constructed BEF could serve as the driving force for triggering fast hydrogen spillover process on bridged Ru-RuP_(2)dual nano-islands,which could invalidate the inhibitory effect of high hydrogen coverage at ampere-level current density,and synchronously speed up the water dissociation on Ru nano-islands and hydrogen adsorption/desorption on RuP_(2)nano-islands through hydrogen spillover process.As a result,the Ru-RuP_(2)/NC affords an ultra-low overpotential of 218 mV to achieve 1.0 A·cm^(−2)along with the superior stability over 1000 h,holding the great promising prospect in practical applications at ampere-level current density.More importantly,this work is the first to advance the scientific understanding of the relationship between the constructed BEF and hydrogen spillover process,which could be enlightening for the rational design of the cost-effective alkaline HER catalysts at ampere-level current density.展开更多
Uniform GaN nanopillar arrays have been successfully fabricated by inductively coupled plasma etching using self-organized nickel nano-islands as the masks on GaN/sapphire. GaN nanopillars with diameters of 350 nm and...Uniform GaN nanopillar arrays have been successfully fabricated by inductively coupled plasma etching using self-organized nickel nano-islands as the masks on GaN/sapphire. GaN nanopillars with diameters of 350 nm and densities of 2.6 × 10^8 cm^-2 were demonstrated and controlled by the thickness of Ni film and the NH3 annealing time. These GaN nanopillars show improved optical properties and strain change compared to that of GaN film before ICP etching. Such structures with large-area uniformity and high density could provide additional advantages for light emission of light-emitting diodes, quality improvement of ELO regrowth, etc.展开更多
文摘Zinc oxide (ZnO) and niobium oxide (NbOx) with a nano-island structure were deposited by a sputtering method on Al-coated glass substrates. Cells with a (ZnO or NbOx)/Al/glass|KNO3aq.|Al/ glass structure were assembled, and electrochemical and photoelectrochemical properties were evaluated. The ZnO and NbOx electrodes had higher electrode potentials than the counter Al/glass electrode, and electron flows from the counter electrode to the ZnO and NbOx electrodes through the external circuit were commonly confirmed. In the ZnO-based cell, only faint photocurrent generation was seen, where Zn and Al elution from the ZnO electrode was found. In the NbOxbased cell, however, stable generation of electricity was successfully achieved, and electrode corrosion was not recognized even in microscopic observations. A photoelectrochemical conversion model was proposed based on potential-pH diagrams. In the case of nano-island structures formed at shorter NbOx deposition time, it was concluded that the photoelectrochemical reactions, which were proceeded in the immediate vicinity of the boundary among nano-islands, substrate, and electrolyte solution, were predominant for the photoelectrochemical conversion, and in the case of film structures with longer deposition time, the predominant reactions took place at the film surface.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.22279124 and 52261145700)Shandong Province Natural Science Foundation(No.ZR2022ZD30)National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF)grant funded by the Korea government(MSIT)(Nos.NRF-2020R1A2C3004146 and RS-2023-00235596).
文摘Employing the alkaline water electrolysis system to generate hydrogen holds great prospects but still poses significant challenges,particularly for the construction of hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)catalysts operating at ampere-level current density.Herein,the unique Ru and RuP_(2)dual nano-islands are deliberately implanted on N-doped carbon substrate(denoted as Ru-RuP_(2)/NC),in which a built-in electric field(BEF)is spontaneously generated between Ru-RuP_(2)dual nano-islands driven by their work function difference.Experimental and theoretical results unveil that such constructed BEF could serve as the driving force for triggering fast hydrogen spillover process on bridged Ru-RuP_(2)dual nano-islands,which could invalidate the inhibitory effect of high hydrogen coverage at ampere-level current density,and synchronously speed up the water dissociation on Ru nano-islands and hydrogen adsorption/desorption on RuP_(2)nano-islands through hydrogen spillover process.As a result,the Ru-RuP_(2)/NC affords an ultra-low overpotential of 218 mV to achieve 1.0 A·cm^(−2)along with the superior stability over 1000 h,holding the great promising prospect in practical applications at ampere-level current density.More importantly,this work is the first to advance the scientific understanding of the relationship between the constructed BEF and hydrogen spillover process,which could be enlightening for the rational design of the cost-effective alkaline HER catalysts at ampere-level current density.
基金Project supported by the Special Funds for Major State Basic Research Project(Nos.2011CB301900,2012CB619304,2010CB327504)the Hi-Tech Research Project(No.2011AA03A103)+1 种基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.60990311,61274003,60936004,61176063)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province(No.BK2011010)
文摘Uniform GaN nanopillar arrays have been successfully fabricated by inductively coupled plasma etching using self-organized nickel nano-islands as the masks on GaN/sapphire. GaN nanopillars with diameters of 350 nm and densities of 2.6 × 10^8 cm^-2 were demonstrated and controlled by the thickness of Ni film and the NH3 annealing time. These GaN nanopillars show improved optical properties and strain change compared to that of GaN film before ICP etching. Such structures with large-area uniformity and high density could provide additional advantages for light emission of light-emitting diodes, quality improvement of ELO regrowth, etc.
