In July 2026, Advanced Materials published the work of Prof. Yan Junqing (Shaanxi Normal University) with Prof. Li Youyong (Soochow University) and Prof. Ma Tianyi (RMIT) on photoelectrochemical water splitting (first author: Tian Kaige; DOI: 10.1002/adma.74048).
For the first time, the self-assembled monolayer Me-4PACz was combined with inorganic NiOx to form an organic-inorganic hybrid hole-selective layer (HSL) on a BiVO4 composite photoanode, extending SAM materials into photoelectrochemical water oxidation.
Me-4PACz is chemically anchored to NiOx through P-O-Ni bonds, forming vertically oriented molecular dipoles. The resulting BiVO4 to NiOx to Me-4PACz staircase cascade removes the interfacial hole-transport barrier and markedly improves photogenerated carrier migration across the interface.
Beyond defect passivation, the electron-withdrawing effect of Me-4PACz propagates through the Ni-O-Ni lattice, converting adjacent Ni2+ into highly active Ni3+ catalytic sites; the phosphonate group's strong coordination field stabilizes the high-valent centers and accelerates water-oxidation kinetics.
PEC measurements used the Perfectlight PLS-FX300HU High-Homogeneity Xenon Lamp, with a continuously tunable 10x10-50x50 mm2 rectangular uniform spot reaching Class-A solar-simulator uniformity at up to 20x20 mm2.
Chinese report: Advanced Materials：光电催化水分解领域新进展.
