Thermal formation of silicon-doped TiO2 thin films with enhanced visible light photoelectrochemical response

Silicon-doped TiO2 thin films were fabricated by annealing titanium metal sheet embedded in SiO2 powders and characterized by X-ray photoemission spectroscopy and photoelectrochemical measurements. The results showed that the content of silicon in the doped TiO2 thin films was proportional to the annealing time and temperature. Enhanced visible light response, more negative flat band potential and higher carrier density were demonstrated by the electrochemical measurement. The technique proposed in this paper can be also applicable to fabricate other doped TiO2 thin films based on the corresponding oxide bath. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.