Integration of Lanthanide-Transition-Metal Clusters onto CdS Surfaces for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution.

Heterometallic lanthanide-transition-metal (4f-3d) clusters with well-defined crystal structures integrate multiple metal centers and provide a platform for achieving synergistic catalytic effects. Herein, we present a strategy for enhanced hydrogen evolution by loading atomically precise 4f-3d clusters Ln Ni on a CdS photoabsorber surface. Interestingly, some Ni ions in the clusters Ln Ni were exchanged by the Cd to form Ln Ni Cd /CdS composites. Photocatalytic studies show that the efficient synergistic multipath charge separation and transfer from CdS to the Eu Ni Cd cluster enable high visible-light-driven hydrogen evolution at 25 353 μmol h  g . This work provides the strategy to design highly active photocatalytic hydrogen evolution catalysts by assembling heterometallic 4f-3d clusters on semiconductor materials.