Coating of Phosphide Catalysts on p-Silicon by a Necking Strategy for Improved Photoelectrochemical Characteristics in Alkaline Media.

The methodology of coating electrocatalysts on semiconductor substrates is critical for the catalytic performance of photoelectrochemical electrodes. A weakly bound coating leads to orders of magnitude lower efficiency and reliability compared to those required to meet the commercial demand. Herein, a facile strategy based on the hydrolysis of TiCl is developed to solve the coating issue. Mesoporous tungsten phosphide (WP) particles were spin-coated and affixed onto TiO-protected planar p-Si by the formation of a TiO necking layer between the catalyst particles and the substrates. Under 1 sun illumination, the as-prepared WP/TiO/Si photocathode yields a saturated current density of -35 mA cm and a durability of over 110 h with a current density over -15 mA cm at 0 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode in a 1.0 M KOH solution, which is among the state-of-the-art performances of commercial planar Si-based photocathodes. The Kelvin probe force microscopy results suggest the successive transfer of photoelectrons from Si to TiO and WP. The as-formed TiO necking layer plays the key role in ensuring the surface catalytic activity and durability. This necking strategy is also applicable for coating other transition-metal phosphides, for example, MoP and FeP, thus offering a practical approach to meet the commercial requirement of low-cost, highly efficient, and durable photoelectrodes.