Efficient Photocatalysts Made by Uniform Decoration of Cu 2 O Nanoparticles on Si Nanowire Arrays with Low Visible Reflectivity.

Highly uniformed decorations of Cu2 O nanoparticles on the sidewalls of silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with high aspect ratio were prepared through a two-step electroless deposition at room temperature. Morphology evolutions and photocatalytic performance of SiNWs decorated with aggregated and dispersed Cu2 O nanoparticles were unveiled, and the correlated photodegradation kinetics was identified. In comparison with the conventional direct loadings where the aggregated Cu2 O/SiNW structures were created, the uniform incorporation of Cu2 O with SiNWs exhibited more than three and nine times of improved photodegradation efficiency than the aggregated-Cu2 O/SiNWs and sole SiNWs, respectively.