{"title":"Pressure-dependent growth of RF-sputtered WS2 nanostructures for enhanced hydrogen production via photoelectrochemical water splitting","authors":"Somnath Ladhane , Shruti Shah , Vidya Doiphode , Pratibha Shinde , Dhanashri Kale , Swati Rahane , Jyoti Thombare , Mansi Ingole , Priti Vairale , Yogesh Hase , Ashish Waghmare , Mohit Prasad , Shashikant P. Patole , Sandesh Jadkar","doi":"10.1016/j.jpowsour.2025.236786","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the influence of process gas pressure during radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering on the growth dynamics and intrinsic properties of tungsten disulphide (WS<sub>2</sub>) nanostructures for efficient photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that increasing process pressure shifts the preferred orientation of WS<sub>2</sub> crystallites from (002) to (100) while maintaining a consistent crystallite size. Scanning electron microscopy investigation verifies that the film morphology transitions from a more planar structure to a vertically aligned configuration. From the optical analysis, the band gap varies from 1.16 eV to 1.45 eV as the working gas pressure changes. This pressure-dependent growth significantly impacts the electrical and PEC properties of WS<sub>2</sub>. At a process pressure of 4 Pa, the highest photocurrent density of ∼ 4.35 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> is achieved. The lowest depletion width (0.90 nm) and highest carrier concentration (6.80 × 10<sup>20</sup> cm<sup>−3</sup>) further justifies the potential ability of WS<sub>2</sub> thin film for enhanced PEC activities. These findings, coupled with a favorable negative shift in the flat band potential, indicate optimized charge carrier transport and enhanced PEC water splitting. Our results provide valuable insights into the growth and optimization of WS<sub>2</sub> nanostructures for efficient hydrogen production via PEC water splitting.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":377,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Power Sources","volume":"640 ","pages":"Article 236786"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Power Sources","FirstCategoryId":"5","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378775325006226","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This study investigates the influence of process gas pressure during radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering on the growth dynamics and intrinsic properties of tungsten disulphide (WS2) nanostructures for efficient photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that increasing process pressure shifts the preferred orientation of WS2 crystallites from (002) to (100) while maintaining a consistent crystallite size. Scanning electron microscopy investigation verifies that the film morphology transitions from a more planar structure to a vertically aligned configuration. From the optical analysis, the band gap varies from 1.16 eV to 1.45 eV as the working gas pressure changes. This pressure-dependent growth significantly impacts the electrical and PEC properties of WS2. At a process pressure of 4 Pa, the highest photocurrent density of ∼ 4.35 mA/cm2 is achieved. The lowest depletion width (0.90 nm) and highest carrier concentration (6.80 × 1020 cm−3) further justifies the potential ability of WS2 thin film for enhanced PEC activities. These findings, coupled with a favorable negative shift in the flat band potential, indicate optimized charge carrier transport and enhanced PEC water splitting. Our results provide valuable insights into the growth and optimization of WS2 nanostructures for efficient hydrogen production via PEC water splitting.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Power Sources is a publication catering to researchers and technologists interested in various aspects of the science, technology, and applications of electrochemical power sources. It covers original research and reviews on primary and secondary batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors, and photo-electrochemical cells.
Topics considered include the research, development and applications of nanomaterials and novel componentry for these devices. Examples of applications of these electrochemical power sources include:
• Portable electronics
• Electric and Hybrid Electric Vehicles
• Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) systems
• Storage of renewable energy
• Satellites and deep space probes
• Boats and ships, drones and aircrafts
• Wearable energy storage systems