title: Photocatalytic water splitting under visible light by mixed-valence Sn(3)O(4).
abstract: A mixed-valence tin oxide, (Sn(2+))2(Sn(4+))O4, was synthesized via a hydrothermal route. The Sn3O4 material consisted of highly crystalline {110} flexes. The Sn3O4 material, when pure platinum (Pt) was used as a co-catalyst, significantly catalyzed water-splitting in aqueous solution under illumination of visible light (λ > 400 nm), whereas neither Sn(2+)O nor Sn(4+)O2 was active toward the reaction. Theoretical calculations have demonstrated that the co-existence of Sn(2+) and Sn(4+) in Sn3O4 leads to a desirable band structure for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from water solution. Sn3O4 has great potential as an abundant, cheap, and environmentally benign solar-energy conversion catalyst.
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Materials Science , 1-1 Namiki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0044, Japan.
authors.forename: Maidhily
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Manikandan
authors.forename: Toyokazu
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authors.lastname: Tanabe
authors.forename: Peng
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authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Shigenori
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authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Gubbala V
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authors.lastname: Ramesh
authors.forename: Rajesh
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authors.forename: Junjie
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authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Toru
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authors.lastname: Hara
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authors.lastname: Dakshanamoorthy
authors.forename: Shinsuke
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authors.lastname: Ishihara
authors.forename: Katsuhiko
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authors.lastname: Ariga
authors.forename: Jinhua
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authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Naoto
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authors.lastname: Umezawa
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Abe