Aqueous-Solution Route to Zinc Telluride Films for Application to CO2 Reduction

Abstract

As a photocathode for CO2 reduction, zinc-blende zinc telluride (ZnTe) was directly formed on a Zn/ZnO nanowire substrate by a simple dissolution-recrystallization mechanism without any surfactant. With the most negative conduction-band edge among p-type semiconductors, this new photocatalyst showed efficient and stable CO formation in photoelectrochemical CO2 reduction at -0.2 - 0.7 V versus RHE without a sacrificial reagent. High performance without sacrifice: Zinc-blende zinc telluride (ZnTe) was directly formed on a Zn/ZnO-nanowire substrate by a simple dissolution-recrystallization mechanism without a surfactant. The ZnTe electrode was applied as a photocathode for CO2 reduction (see picture) and showed efficient and stable CO formation at -0.2 - 0.7 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) without a sacrificial reagent.