Bipolar‐Axis Intergrowth Ferroelectrics for Efficient and Stable Photocatalytic Overall Water Splitting

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Authors: Pengwei Jia, Fang Chen, Xi Zhang, Tong Chen, Xue Jiang, Tong Li, Haiyan Xie, Na Tian, Hongwei Huang
Cited by: 5
References: 51

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ferroelectric semiconductors show huge potential in photocatalytic overall water splitting (POWS), while achieving strong polarization remains challenging. Herein, we develop bipolar‐axis intergrowth ferroelectrics Bi 7 Ti 4 NbO 21 ( i BTN) with colossal polarization intensity and favorable reaction thermodynamics for efficient and stable POWS. Compared to conventional unipolar‐axis ferroelectrics Bi 3 TiNbO 9 and Bi 4 Ti 3 O 12 with symmetric stacking of structural units, the asymmetric stacking structure simultaneously induces prodigious dipole moments superimposed along the a ‐axis (3793.53 D) and interlayer dipole moments along the c ‐axis (106.39 D) within i BTN, establishing ultra‐strong orthogonal polarization fields. Thus, i BTN achieves the lowest exciton binding energy (43.62 meV), highest density of states, ultra‐low electron effective mass (0.010 m 0 ), and exceptionally high electron‐hole effective mass ratio ( m e / m h = 400), enabling synergistic enhancement across the entire photogenerated carrier dynamics process of “generation‐separation‐transport”. Simultaneously, ferroelectric polarization optimizes surface catalysis, allowing favorable adsorption characteristics and low POWS reaction energy barrier. Consequently, i BTN exhibits state‐of‐the‐art POWS rates among pristine ferroelectric photocatalysts, with stoichiometric H 2 and O 2 evolution rates of 73.31 and 37.34 µmol·h −1 , respectively. Outdoor tests present a stable POWS activity of i BTN for 50 h in 10 days, with a solar‐to‐hydrogen efficiency reaching 0.11%, demonstrating considerable practical potential. The development of multipole‐axis intergrowth ferroelectrics unlocks a new path toward efficient POWS.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques Multiferroics and related materials TiO2 Photocatalysis and Solar Cells

Publication details

Journal / source
Advanced Materials
Publisher
Wiley
Volume
38
Issue
36
Pages
e73475–e73475
Publication date
22 May 2026
Language
EN