CuI as Hole-Transport Channel for Enhancing Photoelectrocatalytic Activity by Constructing CuI/BiOI Heterojunction

In this paper, CuI, as a typical hole-transport channel, was used to construct a high-performance visible-light-driven CuI/BiOI heterostructure for photoelectrocatalytic applications. The heterostructure combines the broad visible absorption of BiOI and high hole mobility of CuI. Compared to pure BiOI, the CuI/BiOI heterostructure exhibited distinctly enhanced photoelectrocatalytic performance for the oxidation of methanol and organic pollutants under visible-light irradiation. The photogenerated electron-hole pairs of the excited BiOI can be separated efficiently through CuI, in which the CuI acts as a superior hole-transport channel to improve photoelectrocatalytic oxidization of methanol and organic pollutants. The outstanding photoelectrocatalytic activity shows that the p-type CuI works as a promising hole-transport channel to improve the photocatalytic performance of traditional semiconductors.