Crystal structure design and multiband physical properties of quaternary sulfide Ba5Bi2Co2S10 for optoelectronic conversion

Multiband materials have received increasing attention due to their superior solar absorption properties. Here we design a new multiband compound, namely Ba5Bi2Co2S10, which crystallizes in the space group C22h-P21/m (No. 11) of the monoclinic system. Ba5Bi2Co2S10 is composed of one-dimensional 1∞[Bi2Co2S10]10- chains along the a axis. The adjacent chains are separated by Ba2+ ions. The optical band gap of the compound is 1.05 eV and 0.74 eV, presenting typical multi-absorption characteristics. First-principles calculations, which are perfectly consistent with the experimental results, show that the hybrid coupling effect between Co and S gives rise to multiband characteristics. Evident optoelectronic conversion properties were observed under visible light illumination with a photocurrent density of 4.0 mA cm-2 at 1 V.