The influence of silver particles of different morphologies on the photoactivity of coatings in the Ag-TiO_2 system

摘要

We have obtained highly photoactive film Ag-TiO_2 heterostructures via low-temperature sol-gel synthesis. It is found that a change in the silver nanoparticle morphology significantly influences the photo-response value in the system under consideration. The use of elongated anisotropic nanoparticles (nanowires) produces the maximum increase in photovoltage due to the high absorptive capacity and the increase in the area of interfacial contact with the TiO_2 semiconducting substrate. UV and visible spectroscopy data are used to analyze the dependence of the plasmon resonance effect on the morphology of silver nanoparticles, which are produced in the form of nanopyramids, nanorods, and nanowires. The coupling between the structure and the photoelectrochemical activity of the formed heterostructures is characterized based on the results.