Plasmonic-enhanced photovoltaic output in bismuth ferrite films.

• Elaborate photovoltaic heterostructures of BiFe 0.9375 Ti 0.0625 O 3 film and Au nanoparticles layers were designed and constructed. • These photovoltaic heterostructures exhibited the giant enhancement in the photocurrent density, maximum of which is 158 times higher than that of pure BiFeO 3 film. • An underlying mechanism for enhanced photovoltaic performance was proposed on the basis of local surface plasmon resonance effect. Recently, the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect of BiFeO 3 has attracted much attention due to its above-bandgap photovoltage and switchable photocurrent. However, the very low photocurrent density hinders its practical application. In this paper, elaborate photovoltaic heterostructures were constructed by BiFe 0.9375 Ti 0.0625 O 3 (BFTiO) film and Au nanoparticles layer. The results and analysis demonstrate that these heterostructures exhibit a huge enhancement in photocurrent density. A possible mechanism for the enhanced photocurrent density is proposed herein based on the Local Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR) effect. First, the incident light reaching the Au nanoparticles is amplified by the LSPR effect and reflected into the BFTiO film, thus improving its light absorption. Second, the photogenerated electrons in the vicinity of the BFTiO-Au interface are accelerated by the enhanced electromagnetic field caused by the LSPR effect, thereby promoting the separation efficiency of the photogenerated carriers. Consequently, the LSPR effect significantly increases the photocurrent density of the BFTiO film. Greatly Enhanced Photocurrent density of Bismuth Ferrite Photovoltaic Heterostructures via Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]