Direct splitting of water using a particulate photocatalyst would be a good way to produce clean and recyclable hydrogen on a large scale1, and in the past 30 years various photocatalysts have been found that function under visible light2, 3, 4. Here we describe an advance in the catalysis of the overall splitting of water under visible light: the new catalyst is a solid solution of gallium and zinc nitrogen oxide5, 6, (Ga1-xZnx)(N1-xOx), modified with nanoparticles of a mixed oxide of rhodium and chromium. The mixture functions as a promising and efficient photocatalyst in promoting the evolution of hydrogen gas.
Department of Chemical System Engineering, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
Solution Oriented Research for Science and Technology (SORST) programmes of the Japan Science and Technology Corporation, 4-1-8 Honcho, Kawaguchi-shi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan
Department of Chemistry, Nagaoka University of Technology, Nagaoka 940-2188, Japan