title: Superior visible light hydrogen evolution of Janus bilayer junctions via atomic-level charge flow steering.
abstract: Although photocatalytic hydrogen evolution (PHE) is ideal for solar-to-fuel conversion, it remains challenging to construct a highly efficient PHE system by steering the charge flow in a precise manner. Here we tackle this challenge by assembling 1T MoS2 monolayers selectively and chemically onto (Bi12O17) end-faces of Bi12O17Cl2 monolayers to craft two-dimensional (2D) Janus (Cl2)-(Bi12O17)-(MoS2) bilayer junctions, a new 2D motif different from van der Waals heterostructure. Electrons and holes from visible light-irradiated Bi12O17Cl2 are directionally separated by the internal electric field to (Bi12O17) and (Cl2) end-faces, respectively. The separated electrons can further migrate to MoS2 via Bi-S bonds formed between (Bi12O17) and MoS2 monolayers. This atomic-level directional charge separation endows the Janus bilayers with ultralong carrier lifetime of 3,446 ns and hence a superior visible-light PHE rate of 33 mmol h(-1) g(-1). Our delineated Janus bilayer junctions on the basis of the oriented assembly of monolayers presents a new design concept to effectively steer the charge flow for PHE.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology of Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.|Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, College of Physical Science and Technology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology of Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.
authors.forename: Guangming
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.affiliation: Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, College of Physical Science and Technology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Pesticide and Chemical Biology of Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental Chemistry, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, China.
authors.forename: Lizhi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang