In situ constructing atomic interface in ruthenium-based amorphous hybrid-structure towards solar hydrogen evolution

The rational steering and construction of efficient and stable atomic interfaces is highly desirable but rather challenging in solar energy conversion. Here, we report an in-situ oxygen impregnation strategy to build abundant atomic interfaces composed of homogeneous Ru and RuO x amorphous hybrid-mixture with ultrafast charge transfer, for solar hydrogen evolution with sacrificial agent free. Via in-situ synchrotron X-ray absorption and photoelectron spectroscopies, we can precisely track and identify the gradual formation of atomic interfaces towards homogeneous Ru-RuO x hybrid-structure at the atomic level. Benefiting from the abundant interfaces, the amorphous RuO x sites can intrinsically trap the photoexcited hole within an ultrafast process (