Gold-plasmon enhanced solar-to-hydrogen conversion on the {001} facets of anatase TiO2 nanosheets

Abstract

A 64-fold improved efficiency of solar-to-hydrogen conversion (SHC) was achieved via exposing Au nanoparticles (NPs) on the {001} facets of anatase TiO2 nanosheets. The SHC follows a surface plasmon resonance-mediated electron injection mechanism, where Au NPs can not only harvest visible light and convert them to free energetic electrons, but promote the SHC by increasing the electron–hole pair formation rate driven by the electromagnetic field formed nearby the semiconductor.