Composition-Tuned ZnO/ZnxCd1–xTe Core/Shell Nanowires Array with Broad Spectral Absorption from UV to NIR for Hydrogen Generation

For highly efficient photoelectrodes, the materials used must have both a broad absorption range and large separation efficiency of photogenerated electron–hole pairs. Type II heterostructures with a ternary shell meet these two requirements and thus are recognized as being an ideal materials system for application in photocatalytic hydrogen production. Here, a ZnO/ZnxCd1–xTe core/shell nanowires array with a broad absorption edge from UV (380 nm) to NIR (855 nm) was fabricated via a chemical vapor-deposition method. More importantly, the ZnO/ZnxCd1–xTe core/shell nanowires array are highly single crystalline, and the composition can be continuously tuned by optimizing the deposition temperature, making the design of the desired photocatalyst possible. As expected, the single-crystalline ternary ZnxCd1–xTe shell greatly enhances the charge separation efficiency and prolongs the lifetime of photogenerated charge carriers, which contribute to the high photocatalytic and photoelectrocatalytic activity under ...