Synergistic effects of CuO and Au nanodomains on Cu2O cubes for improving photocatalytic activity and stability

Cu2O is a promising photocatalyst, but it suffers from poor photocatalytic activity and stability, especially for Cu2O cubes. Herein, we report the deposition of CuO and Au nanodomains on Cu2O cubes to form dual surface heterostructures (HCs) to improve photocatalytic activity and stability. The apparent quantum efficiency of Au/CuO/Cu2O HCs was ca. 123 times that of pristine Cu2O. In addition, the Au/CuO/Cu2O HCs maintained nearly 80% of its original activity after eight cycles in contrast to five cycles for the Au/Cu2O material. Therefore, CuO and Au domains greatly improved the photocatalytic activity and stability of the Cu2O cubes due to the synergistic effect of the HCs.