Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Adjustable Stiffness, External Fixator for the Rat Femur Osteotomy and Segmental Bone Defect Models
Published on: October 9, 2014
Defect-Tailoring Mediated Electron-Hole Separation in Single-Unit-Cell Bi3 O4 Br Nanosheets for Boosting
Jun Di1,2, Jiexiang Xia1,3, Matthew F Chisholm4
1School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Institute for Energy Research, Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, 212013, P. R. China.
Abstract:
Solar photocatalysis is a potential solution to satisfying energy demand and its resulting environmental impact. However, the low electron-hole separation efficiency in semiconductors has slowed the development of this technology. The effect of defects on electron-hole separation is not always clear. A model atomically thin structure of single-unit-cell Bi3 O4 Br nanosheets with surface defects is proposed to boost photocatalytic efficiency by simultaneously promoting bulk- and surface-charge separation. Defect-rich single-unit-cell Bi3 O4 Br displays 4.9 and 30.9 times enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and nitrogen fixation activity, respectively, than bulk Bi3 O4 Br. After the preparation of single-unit-cell structure, the bismuth defects are controlled to tune the oxygen defects. Benefiting from the unique single-unit-cell architecture and defects, the local atomic arrangement and electronic structure are tuned so as to greatly increase the charge separation efficiency and subsequently boost photocatalytic activity. This strategy provides an accessible pathway for next-generation photocatalysts.
Related Concept Videos
The Nitrogen Cycle
The Evidence for Evolution
Electron Carriers
Over the many stages of cellular respiration, glucose breaks down into carbon dioxide and water. Electron carriers pick up electrons lost by glucose in these reactions, temporarily storing and releasing them into the electron...
Convergent Evolution
Hydrogen Bonds
Hydrogen Bonds Control the World!
Because hydrogen has very weak electronegativity when it binds with a strongly electronegative atom, such as oxygen or nitrogen, electrons in the bond are unequally shared....
Eukaryotic Evolution
Contrary to the endosymbiont theory, the eukaryote-first hypothesis proposes that the simpler prokaryotic and...

