MoS2 Nanoribbons with a Prolonged Photoresponse Lifetime for Enhanced Visible Light Photoelectrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

The high recombination rate of photoinduced electron-hole pairs limits the hydrogen production efficiency of the MoS₂ catalyst in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. The strategy of prolonging the lifetime of photoinduced carriers is of great significance to the promotion of photoelectrocatalytic hydrogen production. An ideal approach is to utilize edge defects, which can capture photoinduced electrons and thus slow down the recombination rate. However, for two-dimensional MoS₂, most of the surface areas are inert basal planes. Here, a simple method for preparing one-dimensional MoS₂ nanoribbons with abundant inherent edges is proposed. The MoS₂ nanoribbon-based device has a good spectral response in the range of 400-500 nm and has a longer lifetime of photoinduced carriers than other MoS₂ nanostructure-based photodetectors. An improved PEC catalytic performance of these MoS₂ nanoribbons is also experimentally verified under the illumination of 405 nm by using the electrochemical microcell technique. This work provides a new strategy to prolong the lifetime of photoinduced carriers for further improvement of PEC activity, and the evaluation of photoelectric performance provides a feasible way for transition-metal dichalcogenides to be widely used in the energy field.