Matrix phase induced boosting photoactive performance of ZnO nanowire turf‐coated Bi2O3 plate composites

Abstract A new nanocomposite consisting of ZnO nanowire turf‐coated Bi 2 O 3 plates was synthesized using a method combining a chemical bath and hydrothermal crystal growth through sputtering ZnO seed layer‐assisted growth. Structural analysis revealed that highly crystalline, high‐density, one‐dimensional (1D) ZnO crystals were uniformly coated on the organized two‐dimensional (2D) Bi 2 O 3 plates with a single β phase or dual α/β polymorphic phases. The Bi 2 O 3 –ZnO composites exhibited enhanced absorption properties in the ultraviolet and visible regions compared with pristine Bi 2 O 3 and ZnO. Furthermore, the Bi 2 O 3 –ZnO composites exhibited higher photoactive performance than that of the pristine Bi 2 O 3 and ZnO because of the low recombination rate of photoinduced electron−hole pairs caused by the vectorial transfer of electrons and holes between ZnO and Bi 2 O 3 and the substantially increased surface area of the unique composite morphology. The ZnO nanowire turf‐coated Bi 2 O 3 plates with a α/β‐Bi 2 O 3 matrix exhibited photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic properties superior to those of the composite with a single β‐Bi 2 O 3 matrix. The coexistence of α/β homojunction in the Bi 2 O 3 matrix and the abundant heterojunctions between the ZnO nanowires and Bi 2 O 3 plates substantially enhanced photoexcited charge separation efficiency. Growing high‐density 1D ZnO on 2D Bi 2 O 3 via a combination methodology and crystallographic phase control provided a promising material design route for nanocomposite systems with high photoactivity for photoexcited device applications.