Enhanced photoelectrochemical properties of WO_3 thin films fabricated by reactive magnetron sputtering

摘要

Polycrystalline WO_3 thin films were fabricated by reactive magnetron sputtering at a substrate temperature of 350 ℃ under different Ar/O_2 gas pressures. In order to study the thickness dependence of photoelectrochemical (PEC) behavior of WO_3, the thickness-gradient films were fabricated and patterned using a micro-machined Si-shadow mask during the deposition process. The variation of the sputter pressure leads to the evolution of different microstructures of the thin films. The films fabricated at 2 mTorr sputter pressure are dense and show diminished PEC properties, while the films fabricated at 20 mTorr and 30 mTorr are less dense and exhibit enhanced wateT photooxidation efficiency. The enhanced photooxidation is attributed to the coexistence of porous micro-structure and space charge region enabling improved charge carrier transfer to the electrolyte and back contact. A steady-state photocurrent as high as 2.5 mA cm~(-2) at 1 V vs. an Ag/AgCl (3 M KC1) reference electrode was observed. For WO_3 films fabricated at 20 mTorr and 30 mTorr, the photocurrent increases continuously up to a thickness of 600 nm.