The Journal of
the Korean Journal of Metals and Materials

The Journal of
the Korean Journal of Metals and Materials

Monthly
  • pISSN : 1738-8228
  • eISSN : 2288-8241

Editorial Office

Title Enhanced Photoelectrochemical Performance by Constructing CdS/CdSe Heterojunction Structure
Authors 허동규(Dong-gyu Hurh); 김정현(Jung Hyeun Kim)
DOI https://doi.org/10.3365/KJMM.2025.63.2.152
Page pp.152-160
ISSN 1738-8228(ISSN), 2288-8241(eISSN)
Keywords Cadmium sulfide; Cadmium selenide; Heterojunction; Photoanode; Photoelectrochemical
Abstract The growing need for sustainable energy development has become a critical issue due to worsening environmental pollution and climate change. Among the various technologies, the photoelectrochemical technology has been recognized as one of the essential approaches for advancing sustainable energy production. Out of the semiconductor materials used in PEC systems, cadmium sulfide (CdS) and cadmium selenide (CdSe) have been widely studied as promising candidates due to their advantageous properties. CdS, with a bandgap of 2.4 eV and high photoactivity, and CdSe, with a narrower bandgap of 1.9 eV and excellent light absorption characteristics, offer complementary advantages. In this study, we synthesized the CdS and CdSe materials via hydrothermal and chemical bath deposition methods, respectively, to fabricate a CdS/CdSe heterojunction photoanode system. The heterojunction CdS/CdSe photoanode formed a type-II structure, which facilitated efficient charge separation and transfer. Moreover, the CdS/CdSe photoanode exhibited high light absorption properties with very low charge transfer resistance, attributed to the role of CdS particles beneath CdSe as an electron transfer layer and the porous structure of the composite material. As a result, the CdS/CdSe photoanode achieved high photocurrent density of 4.51 mA·cm-2 comparing to their individual cases, representing a 78% improvement in PEC performance compared to the only CdSe photoanode case.(Received 7 October, 2024; Accepted 24 October, 2024)