In Situ Dissolution-Diffusion toward Homogeneous Multiphase Ag/Ag2S@ZnS Core-Shell Heterostructures for Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance

Multiphase Ag/Ag2S@ZnS of homogeneous hybrid coreshell heterostructures with distinctive hierarchical structures have been prepared. The manipulation of composition and structure by virtue of localized Ag ions dissolutiondiffusion within the ZnS shell structure is demonstrated to facilitate homogeneous hybridization between Ag/Ag2S and ZnS. In addition to the presence of Ag/Ag2S core, the in situ hybridization optimizes contact interface for heterojunction-induced charge transfer, an outstanding challenge commonly faced in photocatalyst design. This work also validates integration of multicomponent material to form a complex hybrid heterostructure that is not accessible by conventional synthesis methodology. Finally, this work concludes with proof of concept demonstrating the feasibility of employing the as-prepared multiphase Ag/Ag2S@ZnS coreshell heterostructures as visible to UV light responsive photocatalyst for solar H-2 production.