Liquid phase epitaxy of CuGaO on GaN: P-N heterostructure for photocatalytic water splitting

Semiconductor photocatalytic water splitting is a promising method to address the worldwide energy issues. Fast carrier recombination and the limited visible-light absorption are two main challenges to be overcome, and designing p-n heterojunctions is an effective solution. In this study, two direct band gap semiconductors are selected to form a p-n heterojunction. The results show that liquid phase epitaxy of a thick film p-type CuGaO 2 on an n-type GaN substrate is effective for the splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen. A P-N heterostructure composed of CuGaO 2 and GaN shows outstanding photocatalytic water splitting.