Oxide Semiconductors

Optimizing light harvesting and carrier transport through control of structure and composition

The field of PEC solar fuel production began with the observation of water photo-oxidation on TiO2. Indeed, semiconducting metal oxides generally are attractive photoelectrodes for solar water splitting as the relatively high electronegativity of oxygen results in the formation of stable compounds based on O2– anions. However the identification of an ideal metal oxide photoelectrode materials remains a challenge. Given the vast number of possibilities, ternary and more complex multinary oxides hold much promise for future development. LIMNO works to rationally engineering the band gap in promising ternary and multinary oxides, and to develop preparation routes to control the structure and nature/concentration of defects in these materials. We use advanced purtabation and transient (photo)electrochemical analysis techniques to understand the processes of charge transport and interfacial charge transfer in operando in order to advance the performance of this promising class of semiconducting materials. See examples of our work below.


Representative publications:

Insights into the interfacial carrier behaviour of copper ferrite ( CuFe2O4) photoanodes for solar water oxidation

Y. Liu; F. Le Formal; F. Boudoire; L. Yao; K. Sivula et al. 

Journal Of Materials Chemistry A. 2019-01-28. Vol. 7, num. 4, p. 1669-1677. DOI : 10.1039/c8ta11160j.

Spinel Structural Disorder Influences Solar-Water-Splitting Performance of ZnFe2 O4 Nanorod Photoanodes

X. Zhu; N. Guijarro; Y. Liu; P. Schouwink; R. A. Wells et al. 

Advanced Materials. 2018.  p. 1801612. DOI : 10.1002/adma.201801612.

Evaluating spinel ferrites MFe2O4 (M = Cu, Mg, Zn) as photoanodes for solar water oxidation: prospects and limitations

N. Guijarro; P. Bornoz; M. Prévot; X. Yu; X. Zhu et al. 

Sustainable Energy & Fuels. 2018. Vol. 2, num. 1, p. 103-117. DOI : 10.1039/C7SE00448F.

Evaluating Charge Carrier Transport and Surface States in CuFeO

M. S. Prévot; X. A. Jeanbourquin; W. S. Bourée; F. Abdi; D. Friedrich et al. 

Chemistry of Materials. 2017. Vol. 29, num. 11, p. 4952-4962. DOI : 10.1021/acs.chemmater.7b01284.

Robust Hierarchically Structured Biphasic Ambipolar Oxide Photoelectrodes for Light-Driven Chemical Regulation and Switchable Logic Applications

W. S. Bourée; M. S. Prévot; X. A. Jeanbourquin; N. Guijarro; M. Johnson et al. 

Advanced Materials. 2016. Vol. 28, num. 42, p. 9308-9312. DOI : 10.1002/adma.201602265.

Improving charge collection with delafossite photocathodes: a host–guest CuAlO2/CuFeO2 approach

M. S. Prévot; Y. Li; N. Guijarro; K. Sivula 

Journal of Materials Chemistry A. 2016. Vol. 4, num. 8, p. 3018-3026. DOI : 10.1039/C5TA06336A.