Photoelectrochemical properties of Bi2S3 thin films deposited by successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method

Abstract Bi 2 S 3 nanoparticles (NPs) in the form of thin films were deposited on fluorine doped SnO 2 (FTO) coated conducting glass substrates by successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) at room temperature without annealing. The absorption coefficient could reach to the order of 10 6  cm −1 in the visible and NIR region, and the highest one was 5 × 10 6  cm −1 . The highest photocurrent density of the synthesized Bi 2 S 3 thin films (TFs) could maintain 0.8 mA/cm 2 within 700 s under the light intensity kept at 30 mW/cm 2 . The photocurrent density is among the highest reported for any Bi 2 S 3 photoelectrode without annealing to date. The photocurrent display little decrease during 4000 s of testing under illumination. The n-type Bi 2 S 3 thin films display a reasonable photoactivity and photostablity under illumination and are thus promising candidates for photoelectrochemical applications.