Efficient photoanode characteristics of cadmium sulfide films multi-deposited through a chemical bath deposition process

Photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic reactions are extensively investigated in terms of artificial photosynthesis as well as environmental purification, where the application of a photoelectrode (or a photocatalyst) responding to visible light for a targeted reaction is desired towards the massive decomposition to products. Cadmium sulfide (CdS) has attracted attention as one of the promising candidates, owing to its narrow band gap and large absorption coefficient. In the present work, CdS photoelectrode was prepared for the first time by chemical bath deposition process, especially with multiple deposition steps. When it was utilized as the photoanode in the presence of S2-, the steady-state photocurrents of the multi-deposited CdS were much higher than that of the single-deposited one. The above improvement was attributable to an increase in surface area originating in the formation of porous structure. In addition, the multi-deposited CdS got thicker on the vertical direction to electrode substrate, causing the redshift of its absorption edge, and thus enhancing the photoanodic output. This work provides a novel and effective approach for fabricating CdS photoelectrode. [GRAPHICS] .

Automated summary

A multi-deposited CdS photoelectrode was prepared by chemical bath deposition process, and it showed significantly higher steady-state photocurrents compared to the single-deposited CdS. This improvement was attributed to the formation of a porous structure, which increased the surface area of CdS and resulted in a thicker deposition on the electrode substrate, causing a redshift of absorption edge and enhancing the photoanodic output.