The Potential of Overlayers on Tin-based Perovskites for Water Splitting

• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.0c00964
• Publication Date: 2020-05-01T00:51:50Z
• Authors: Ned Thaddeus Taylor; Conor Jason Price; Alexander Petkov; Marcus Ian Romani...; Jason Charles Hale; Steven Paul Heppl...
• Keywords: Overlayer; Oxygen evolution

Photoelectrochemical water splitting is a promising method of clean hydrogen production for green energy uses. Here, we report on tin-based oxide perovskite combined with an overlayer that shows enhanced bifunctional and oxygen evolution. In our first-principles study perovskites, based upon density functional theory, investigate how the formation surface affects electronic properties these materials. We show best candidate, SrSnO3, possesses overpotentials 0.75 0.72 eV, respectively, which are reduced to 0.35 0.54 eV inclusion ZrO2 overlayer. Furthermore, this promotes charge extraction, stabilizes reaction pathways, improves band gap such it straddles between pH 0 12. This result indicates SrSnO3 has significant potential as highly efficient splitter producing gas same surface.