Materials Today Energy 9, 303-310 (2018)

Enhancement of photo-electrochemical reactions in MAPbI₃/Au

Shenghuang Lin^a,1, Yang Liu^a,1, Zhixin Hu^b,1, Gongxun Bai^a, Yanyong Li^a, Huiyu Yuan^a, Yunzhou Xue^a, Lukas Rogee^a, Jianhua Hao^a, Xuming Zhang^a,*, Shu Ping Lau^a,*

a Department of Applied Physics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

b Center for Joint Quantum Studies, Physics Department of Tianjin University, Tianjin, PR China

1 Equal contribution

* Corresponding Authors:

Email: X. Zhang (xuming.zhang@polyu.edu.hk)

Email: S.P. Lau (apsplau@polyu.edu.hk)

Abstract

Methylammonium lead iodide perovskite (MAPbI₃), as a new type of light absorber for optoelectronic devices, has attracted much interest and served as foundation for new device concepts. However, most studies to date are mainly focusing on the fabrication of MAPbI₃-based solar cells and photodetectors. Here we report a facile method to prepare a large-scale MAPbI₃ photocatalyst through atmospheric pressure physical vapor deposition. The photocurrent density of the MAPbI₃ coated with an Au layer can reach 30.8 and 85.5 uA/cm2 in ethanol and H₂SO₄ electrolytes, respectively. Meanwhile, the strong interaction between H₂O orbitals and the conduction band of MAPbI₃ is revealed by density functional theory calculations. Our study opens a new pathway for the development of perovskite-based photo-electrochemical reaction systems.