One-step synthesis of hierarchical AuNPs/Cd0.5Zn0.5S nanoarchitectures and their application as an efficient photocatalyst for hydrogen production

Abstract The hierarchical AuNPs/Cd 0.5 Zn 0.5 S hybrids are directly fabricated via a facile one-step in-situ hydrothermal method. The as-prepared AuNPs/Cd 0.5 Zn 0.5 S hybrids demonstrate superior photocatalytic performance toward hydrogen production under visible light irradiation. The hydrogen evolution rate of the 5 wt% AuNPs/Cd 0.5 Zn 0.5 S synthesized with in-situ hydrothermal method can be 7.1 times greater than that of pure Cd 0.5 Zn 0.5 S and as much as 2.5 times of 5 wt% AuNPs loaded Cd 0.5 Zn 0.5 S synthesized with photodeposition method. Systematical investigations reveal that the enhanced photocatalytic performance of the one-step in-situ prepared AuNPs/Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S can be attributed to the inherent SPR effect and favorable electron transfer properties of AuNPs, as well as the rational hierarchical nanoarchitectures that allow AuNPs to be uniformly incorporated into Zn 0.5 Cd 0.5 S matrix. This one-step in-situ fabrication method provides a simple and efficient route to synthesize well-defined heterocatalysts.