Vertically aligned one-dimensional (1D) titanium dioxide (TiO2) arrays on transparent conducting oxide (TCO) substrates, which can act as host electron transport materials for low bandgap materials, were synthesized via a hydrothermal reaction combined with a controlled chemical etching process. By controlling the chemical etching conditions, we can maximize the light transmission properties of the 1D TiO2 arrays, which is beneficial for the front electrode in photoelectrochemical (PEC) tandem configurations. As a result, dual sensitization to form 1D TiO2@CdS@CdSe (CdS and CdSe coated 1D TiO2) results in excellent photocurrent density, as well as transparency, and the resulting material is able to pass unabsorbed photons through the front electrode into the rear bias solar cell. Owing to the improved light transmission in combination with the increased specific surface area of the obtained 1D TiO2 arrays from the controlled etching process, a high-efficiency PEC tandem device with ∼2.1% was successfully fabricated for unassisted hydrogen evolution. Efficient PEC tandem device was fabricated for unassisted solar hydrogen generation using highly transparent composite electrode composed of dual sensitization to form 1D TiO2@CdS@CdSe.
Keywords: TiO2 nanotube; spontaneous hydrogen evolution; tandem cell; water splitting.