TiO 2 Anatase with a Bandgap in the Visible Region

TiO2 anatase plays a central role in energy and environmental research. A major bottleneck toward developing artificial photosynthesis with TiO2 is that it only absorbs ultraviolet light, owing to its large bandgap of 3.2 eV. If one could reduce the bandgap of anatase to the visible region, TiO2-based photocatalysis could become a competitive clean energy source. Here, using scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy in conjunction with density functional theory calculations, we report the discovery of a highly reactive titanium-terminated anatase surface with a reduced bandgap of less than 2 eV, stretching into the red portion of the solar spectrum. By tuning the surface preparation conditions, we can…

• AV
  Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung
• LT
  Leverhulme Trust

  Award: RL-2012-001
• EA
  Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

  Awards: EP/J009857/1, EP/J009857/1
• ER
  European Research Council

  Award: 239578