Hydrothermal Synthesis of CdS Layer on Ag Nanowires and its Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity

A novel metal-semiconductor sample of CdS-coated Ag nanowires (NWs) has been synthesized by a simple and convenient hydrothermal method. The thickness of the CdS coating layer can be controlled by changing the concentration of the precursor solution. The as-prepared samples were thoroughly characterized using Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the High-resolution TEM (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples was investigated. The result shows that CdS layer has been successfully coated on the Ag NWs surface. It was found that CdS layer increases with increasing molar concentration of Cd2+. The absorption band of CdS-coated Ag NWs is distinctly broadened and red shifted to Ag NWs. It was also observed that the CdS-coated Ag NWs show better photocatalytic activities than the uncoated Ag NWs in the decomposition of an organic dye - Rhodamine B in aqueous solution under light irradiation.