Porous silicon nanoparticles as a nanophotocathode for photoelectrochemical water splitting

The antireflective properties and nanometer sizes of silicon nanoparticles can be exploited for improved solar energy conversion. We report on using porous silicon nanoparticles as a photocathode for photoelectrochemical water splitting. An enhancement in the photocurrent density was observed when porous silicon nanoparticles were decorated with indium phosphide nanocrystals and a bio-inspired iron sulfur carbonyl electrocatalyst. Our system gave a photocurrent density of -2.2 mu A cm(-2) while generating hydrogen gas.