Sonochemical Engineering of Atomic Pb─O─Zn Bridges for Robust Z‐Scheme Overall Pure Water Splitting

ABSTRACT Efficient photocatalytic overall water splitting is often constrained by the fundamental trade‐off between charge separation efficiency and redox driving force in conventional heterojunctions. Direct Z‐scheme architectures theoretically resolve this dilemma, yet constructing robust, defect‐free interfaces remains a formidable synthetic challenge. Here, we introduce a sonochemical strategy in which transient cavitation drives the in situ insertion of Zn during the growth of In 2 S 3 on PbTiO 3 , giving rise to interfacial Pb─O─Zn bridges. These Zn bridges convert the junction from type‐II to a direct Z‐scheme, enabling selective interfacial recombination while preserving high oxidation and reduction potentials. Multimodal spectroscopic and density functional theory confirmed the Z‐scheme pathway and prolonged carrier lifetimes. The resulting photocatalyst delivers stoichiometric H 2 and O 2 evolution rates of 166.6 and 81.7 µmol h − 1 , demonstrating a competitive performance within reported Z‐scheme heterostructure‐based photocatalysts. This transient cavitation‐driven heteroatom insertion strategy provides a potentially general and programmable protocol for engineering precise semiconductor interfaces and constructing direct Z‐scheme junctions for solar fuel production.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Functional Materials
Published
2026-04-21
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.75527
Primary Topic
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Sonochemical Engineering of Atomic Pb─O─Zn Bridges for Robust Z‐Scheme Overall Pure Water Splitting

Dongniu Wang, Tianyun Liu, Linxing Meng, Wei Zhai et al.
Advanced Functional Materials
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
article

Sonochemical Engineering of Atomic Pb─O─Zn Bridges for Robust Z‐Scheme Overall Pure Water Splitting

Dongniu Wang, Tianyun Liu, Linxing Meng, Wei Zhai, Bo Shao, Liang Li, Chiyao Zheng
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Efficient photocatalytic overall water splitting is often constrained by the fundamental trade‐off between charge separation efficiency and redox driving force in conventional heterojunctions. Direct Z‐scheme architectures theoretically resolve this dilemma, yet constructing robust, defect‐free interfaces remains a formidable synthetic challenge. Here, we introduce a sonochemical strategy in which transient cavitation drives the in situ insertion of Zn during the growth of In 2 S 3 on PbTiO 3 , giving rise to interfacial Pb─O─Zn bridges. These Zn bridges convert the junction from type‐II to a direct Z‐scheme, enabling selective interfacial recombination while preserving high oxidation and reduction potentials. Multimodal spectroscopic and density functional theory confirmed the Z‐scheme pathway and prolonged carrier lifetimes. The resulting photocatalyst delivers stoichiometric H 2 and O 2 evolution rates of 166.6 and 81.7 µmol h − 1 , demonstrating a competitive performance within reported Z‐scheme heterostructure‐based photocatalysts. This transient cavitation‐driven heteroatom insertion strategy provides a potentially general and programmable protocol for engineering precise semiconductor interfaces and constructing direct Z‐scheme junctions for solar fuel production.

Advanced Functional Materials
Northwestern Polytechnical University (CN), Soochow University (CN), Suzhou Research Institute (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions, National Key Research and Development Program of China
Openalex Percentile: Top 17%
Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.

Sonochemical Engineering of Atomic Pb─O─Zn Bridges for Robust Z‐Scheme Overall Pure Water Splitting — Dongniu Wang, Tianyun Liu, et al. · Advanced Functional Materials (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS