Photoelectrochemical properties and characterization of TiO2 nanotube arrays decorated with Ag nanoparticles via UV light photoreduction method

Abstract

A combination of a facile electrochemical anodic oxidation and UV light photochemical reduction was performed to fabricate silver nanoparticle loaded titanium dioxide nanotube arrays (Ag/TNAs). The Ag/TNAs samples demonstrated an extended optical absorbance in visible region which was attributed to the surface plasmon resonance effect of Ag. The photoelectrochemical behavior of the fabricated samples was examined using linear sweep voltammetry, transient photocurrent responses and incident photon to current conversion measurements. Compared with the bare TNT, the Ag decorated photoanodes revealed a higher 1.5-fold photoelectrochemical activity for the 5 min UV light irradiated Ag/TNAs sample, also revealing that the phenomenon retards as the nanoparticle size is increased.