V ions implanted ZnO nanorod arrays for photoelectrochemical water splitting under visible light

• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.11.114
• Publication Date: 2014-12-14T14:30:35Z
• Authors: Li Cai; Feng Ren; Meng Wang; Guangxu Cai; Yubin Chen; Yichao Liu; Shaohua Shen; Liejin Guo
• Keywords: Nanorod; Photocurrent; Visible spectrum

Abstract In this work, V ions were doped into ZnO nanorod arrays via an advanced ion implantation method for photoelectrochemical water splitting under visible light. It was indicated that the V dopants were incorporated into ZnO lattice as V 4+ and V 5+ ions. V ion doping expanded the optical absorption of ZnO nanorod arrays into visible light region and led to considerable photoelectrochemical performance under visible light illumination ( λ > 420 nm). The photocurrent density of V ions doped ZnO nanorod arrays could achieve 10.5 μA/cm 2 at 0.8 V (vs. Ag/AgCl), which was about 4 times higher than that of the pure ZnO nanorod arrays. The enhancement in photoelectrochemical performances for V ions doped ZnO nanorod arrays should be attributed to the improved visible light absorption ability and the increased charge carrier density induced by V ion doping.