Interface engineering is a proven strategy to improve the efficiency of thin film semiconductor based solar energy conversion devices. TaN thin film photoanode is a promising candidate for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. Yet, a concerted effort to engineer both the bottom and top interfaces of TaN thin film photoanode is still lacking. Here, we employ n-type In:GaN and p-type Mg:GaN to modify the bottom and top interfaces of TaN thin film photoanode, respectively. The obtained In:GaN/TaN/Mg:GaN heterojunction photoanode shows enhanced bulk carrier separation capability and better injection efficiency at photoanode/electrolyte interface, which lead to a record-high applied bias photon-to-current efficiency of 3.46% for TaN-based photoanode. Furthermore, the roles of the In:GaN and Mg:GaN layers are distinguished through mechanistic studies. While the In:GaN layer contributes mainly to the enhanced bulk charge separation efficiency, the Mg:GaN layer improves the surface charge inject efficiency. This work demonstrates the crucial role of proper interface engineering for thin film-based photoanode in achieving efficient PEC water splitting.

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8821563PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-28415-4DOI Listing

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