Electrochemical and photo response behavior of in situ Fe doped Ti3SiC2 after anodization

Abstract Electrochemical and photo behavior of quaternary-layered Fe doped Ti3SiC2 (Fe-TSC) fabricated via in situ method with different SiFe contents after anodization was investigated through optical and electrical examinations for elucidating both the photo response behavior and energy storage mechanism. Results showed that Fe element was successfully doped into the Ti3SiC2 by in situ sintering. Then the anodized phase of Fe-TSC transformed into Fe doped TiO2 along with the significantly changed morphological shape from smooth intercalation structure to nanoporous layered structure by simultaneous chemical dissolution and oxidation. The dramatically enhanced photocurrent of 4.68 μA cm−2 and capacitor performance of 16.9 mF cm−2 for the anodized Fe doped Ti3SiC2 (Fe-ATSC) demonstrated that the superior composition and structure than the Fe-TSC. The enhanced visible light adsorption is attributed to the Fe doped TiO2 (Fe-TiO2) and the unique structure with diffusion channels to amplify the light efficiency and impede the recombination to prolong the life time of electrons/holes. The reinforced capacitive behavior refers to the nanoporous multilayer structure which encompasses abundant active energy storage. Moreover, the well electrochemical stability of the Fe-ATSC is evidenced by the capacitance which can retain 90.6% after 900 cycles.