Abstract
One dimensional(1D) $Na_2Ti_6O_{13}$ nanorods with 70 nm in diameter was synthesized by a molten salt method. Using the synthesized nanorods, about 750 nm thick $Na_2Ti_6O_{13}$ film was coated on Fluorine-doped tin oxide(FTO) glasss substrate by the Layer-by-layer self-assembly(LBL-SA) method in which a repetitive self-assembling of ions containing an opposite electric charge in an aqueous solution was utilized. Using the Kubelka-Munk function, the band gap energy of the 1D-$Na_2Ti_6O_{13}$ nanorods was nalyzed to be 3.5 eV. On the other hand, the band gap energy of the $Na_2Ti_6O_{13}$ film coated on FTO was found to be a reduced value of 2.9 eV, resulting from the nano-scale and high porosity of the film processed by LBL-SA method, which was favorable for the photo absorption capability. A significant improvement of photocurrent and onset voltage was observed with the $Na_2Ti_6O_{13}$ film incorporated into the conventional $Fe_2O_3$ photoelectrode: the photocurrent increased from 0.25 to 0.82 mA/$cm^2$, the onset voltage decreased from 0.95 to 0.78 V.
