Enhancement of Photoelectrochemical Performance of AACVD-produced TiO2 Electrodes by Microwave Irradiation while Preserving the Nanostructure

TiO2 electrodes are deposited on FTO-glass substrates at 350 and 400?degrees C by aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) and the deposited TiO2 electrodes are irradiated with microwave radiation (2.45?GHz) at various percentages (10, 25, 50, and 100%). X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern shows that the deposited electrodes have anatase phase TiO2 oriented in the (101) direction, and the crystallinity of these electrodes increases after microwave treatment. Field emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM) surface topography analysis proves the preservation of the nanostructure after exposure to various percentages of microwave radiation. The photoelectrochemical (PEC) studies prove a threefold enhancement of photocurrent density of AACVD-produced TiO2 electrodes after 100% microwave irradiation. This improved performance of PEC properties is attributed to improvements in the crystallinity and the particle-necking properties. The results presented demonstrate that microwave processing is a promising alternative method to conventional sintering for TiO2 photoanodes.