Facile synthesis of cadmium phosphorus trisulfide nanosheets for highly efficient photocatalytic performance

With the rise of two-dimensional (2D) materials, layered metal thiophosphates (MPS3), as an important branch, have attracted much attention because of their excellent physical and chemical properties. Cadmium phosphorus trisulfide (CdPS3), as a promising photocatalyst, can be used for hydrogen evolution and organic degradation. Herein, high-quality 2D CdPS3 few layers are obtained by exfoliating bulk CdPS3 crystal. The optical properties of the as-obtained CdPS3 few layers show good light-harvesting ability, endowing it with excellent photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance (10.88 mmol g−1 h−1) and high organic degradation performance (more than 92% within 30 min) under Xe lamp irradiation. This research provides opportunities for the preparation and application of other 2D MPS3 type materials in the field of photocatalysis.