Photoelectrocatalytic properties of hydroxyalkyl functionalized germananes

The characteristics of widely explored two-dimensional (2D) layered materials make them promising objects for structural functionalization to adjust their physical and chemical properties. The chemical functionalization of graphene family members has been reported to be useful in catalysis, although the efficiency of organic substitution of germanene, the newborn in the graphene family, remains limited and fairly attracts significant scientific attention. In this study, we explore the photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity of hydroxyalkyl germananes Gen-(CH2)n-OH (n = 2, 6, 10) through PEC-type photodetector experiments, employing excitation wavelengths ranging from 360 to 720 nm. Our findings reveal that organic substitution induces the opening of the germanane band gap, leading to a significant widening up to 2.38 eV and enhanced charge transfer kinetics under visible light irradiation.