Dynamic aspects of semiconductor photoelectrochemistry

This chapter reviews the mechanism of photocurrent generation at the illuminated semiconductor/electrolyte interface and develops a simplified description of the kinetics of minority carrier reactions (including surface recombination) which can be solved for the non steady-state case. Pulsed, chopped and sinusoidally modulated optical perturbations are discussed within the framework of a generalised approach, and published experimental data obtained with these different excitation profiles are contrasted with the results of model calculations. The extension of intensity modulated photocurrent spectroscopy (IMPS) to more complex kinetic schemes is illustrated by a theoretical and experimental study of current doubling.

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