Beyond noble metals: Plasmonics in nanobismuth for solar water splitting and surface-enhanced Raman scattering

Sub-10 nm Bi nanoparticle (NP) is employed herein as an alternative plasmonic nanomaterial to those made of precious Au and Ag, exhibiting localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) at wavelengths from the UV to the visible regions. Upon attaching to the ZnO nanorod array (NRA), near-field enhanced photogeneration of charge carriers and heterojunction-rectified charge transfer are observed under broadband sunlight illumination. The synergistic effect renders the derived Bi/ZnO composite attractive for solar water splitting, of which the photocurrent density reaches similar to 0.8 mA cm(-2) at 0.6 V-Ag/AgCl (similar to 1.23 V-RHE). Upon further decorated with proline, electric field-enhanced Raman spectrum is additionally seen under visible light irradiation, highlighting the great promise of this Bign0 composite also for bioanalytical application. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.