Enhancement of Cu2O photocatalytic activity by plasmonic copper structure: Comparison with plasmonic gold structure

摘要

We have recently succeeded in preparing visible and NIR light-responsive plasmonic photocatalysts based on hierarchical structures of Cu2O/plasmonic Cu arrays.1 The rate of photodegradation of methyl orange was 84 times faster than that with a Cu2O/nonplasmonic Cu plate. As a cause of the abnormal enhancement, we focus on the specific interfacial morphology of the Cu2O/Cu arrays. The interface between the Cu2O and Cu in the present system is expected to be rough, because Cu2O-rich regions are formed via the spontaneous oxidation of Cu arrays. In this study, we investigate the effect of the interfacial morphology on the photocatalytic activity by comparing with that of Cu2O/plasmonic Au arrays.