A nanostructured hematite film prepared by a facile "top down" method for application in photoelectrochemistry.

To overcome tough conditions currently used for the preparation of nanostructured hematite films on a conducting substrate, a rational and easy method of chemical etching involving Fe release and material growth in the presence of OH has been developed. By carefully tuning the parameters influencing the morphologies of hematite, including the synthetic procedure, the concentration of etching solution, temperature, etching time and the morphology controlling surfactant, hematite films grown on iron foil with various morphologies (e.g.