2D/0D plasmonic CuSe/CdS for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen activity via strong Vis-NIR light and interfacial effect

The rational design of plasmonic material/semiconductor can effectively enhance the light absorption and charge carrier’s concentration, optimizing their photocatalytic performance. Herein, we prepared a plasmonic CuSe nanosheet loaded by CdS nanoparticles to form a p-n typed heterogeneous photocatalyst. The CuSe/CdS composites performed superior photocatalytic hydrogen activities in full spectrum: The best hydrogen production rate of the CuSe/CdS composite catalyst was 1402 μmol g−1h−1 under λ > 420 nm (10.5 times of CdS), 297 μmol g−1h−1 under λ > 520 nm and additionally 16 μmol g−1h−1 under λ > 780 nm. Various analysis demonstrates the utilization of localized surface plasmon resonance（LSPR）endows CuSe/CdS Vis-NIR broad absorption capacity and good photothermal effect, promoting the efficient separation of charge carriers and the H2 production of hot electrons in the p-n heterojunction. The reasonable design offers a new path to achieve the full-spectrum driven photocatalytic activity.