title: Wireless solar water splitting using silicon-based semiconductors and earth-abundant catalysts.
abstract: We describe the development of solar water-splitting cells comprising earth-abundant elements that operate in near-neutral pH conditions, both with and without connecting wires. The cells consist of a triple junction, amorphous silicon photovoltaic interfaced to hydrogen- and oxygen-evolving catalysts made from an alloy of earth-abundant metals and a cobalt|borate catalyst, respectively. The devices described here carry out the solar-driven water-splitting reaction at efficiencies of 4.7% for a wired configuration and 2.5% for a wireless configuration when illuminated with 1 sun (100 milliwatts per square centimeter) of air mass 1.5 simulated sunlight. Fuel-forming catalysts interfaced with light-harvesting semiconductors afford a pathway to direct solar-to-fuels conversion that captures many of the basic functional elements of a leaf.
authors.affiliation: Sun Catalytix, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. streece@suncatalytix.com
authors.forename: Steven Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Reece
authors.forename: Jonathan A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hamel
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sung
authors.forename: Thomas D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Jarvi
authors.forename: Arthur J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Esswein
authors.forename: Joep J H
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Pijpers
authors.forename: Daniel G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Nocera