One-pot synthesis of Bi2TiO4F2/BiOBr ferroelectric heterostructure for photocatalytic oxygen evolution

The internal electric field of ferroelectric materials originated from its spontaneous polarization can effectively improve the efficiency of carrier separation. Heterostructure formed by combining ferroelectric materials with semiconductor can further strengthen the photocatalytic property. In this work, ferroelectric material Bi2TiO4F2 has been successfully grown on the BiOBr {001} facet by a facial one-pot hydrothermal synthesis. Benefiting from both the internal electric field derived from the ferroelectric spontaneous polarization of Bi2TiO4F2, and the high-quality heterojunction interface, the O-2 production rate of BiOBr/ Bi2TiO4F2 heterojunction reaches 875 mu mol g(-1)h(-1). The possible formation process and reaction mechanism has also been discussed. This research may provide us with some new hints to design new heterostructure photocatalytic materials with both ferroelectricity and active exposure surfaces. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

By growing ferroelectric material Bi2TiO4F2 on the BiOBr {001} facet, a high-quality heterojunction interface was formed to enhance the O-2 production rate. The study of the formation process and reaction mechanism of the new heterostructure photocatalytic materials provides insights for designing future photocatalytic materials with both ferroelectricity and active exposure surfaces.