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- Published: 22 January 2026
Nature Communications , Article number: (2026) Cite this article
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Abstract
Current research in photoelectrochemical (PEC) systems focuses on designing photoelectrodes with light-enhanced charge transfer efficiency at the solid-liquid interface, which leads to the oxidation of various reductant molecules at the anode, p…
- Article
- Open access
- Published: 22 January 2026
Nature Communications , Article number: (2026) Cite this article
We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.
Abstract
Current research in photoelectrochemical (PEC) systems focuses on designing photoelectrodes with light-enhanced charge transfer efficiency at the solid-liquid interface, which leads to the oxidation of various reductant molecules at the anode, posing a challenge in terms of selectivity. In this study, we introduce an original concept of dark-enhanced PEC system (dark-PEC) based on bismuth oxybromide (BiOBr)-photocathode. The reversible bismuth reduction causes the passivation and regeneration of oxygen reduction sites on the photocathode, thereby leading to an unconventional reverse photocurrent (|Idark | > |Ilight | ) signal under air conditions. Significantly, owing to the selective binding and charge transfer between glutathione and BiOBr, the reversibility of bismuth reduction is increased, with a 10-fold enhancement of reverse photocurrent. Compared to traditional PEC systems, the dark-PEC system enables the selective recognition of reductant molecules by photocathodes, unveiling an original PEC reaction mechanism. This study will offer valuable insights into device design and redox processes in the PEC field.
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Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (nos. 22474103 (L.H.), 22474046 (W.G.)), Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province (2023AFB571) (L.H.), Knowledge Innovation Program of Wuhan-Shuguang Project (2023020201020441) (L.H.), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (nos. CCNU25QN004 and CCNU24JCPT032) (C.Z.) and the Program of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities of China (111 program, B17019) (C.Z.).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
State Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide, International Joint Research Center for Intelligent Biosensing Technology and Health, College of Chemistry, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, PR China
Ying Qin, Yuanxing Chen, Haifei Wan, Siting Wu, Jingyi Zhang, Wenhong Yang, Yifei Chen, Wenling Gu & Chengzhou Zhu 1.
Hubei Key Laboratory of Plasma Chemistry and Advanced Materials, Hubei Engineering Technology Research Center of Optoelectronic and New Energy Materials, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan, PR China
Liuyong Hu
Authors
- Ying Qin
- Yuanxing Chen
- Haifei Wan
- Siting Wu
- Jingyi Zhang
- Wenhong Yang
- Yifei Chen
- Liuyong Hu
- Wenling Gu
- Chengzhou Zhu
Contributions
Y.Q.: investigation, data curation, writing-original draft. Y.-X.C.: providing help in measurements. H.W.: providing help in measurements. S.W.: providing help in measurements. J.Z.: validation. W.Y.: formal analysis. Y.-F.C.: providing help in sensing design. L.H.: supervision, conceptualization, writing-review & editing. W.G.: methodology, formal analysis. C.Z.: supervision, funding acquisition, writing-review & editing, project administration.
Corresponding authors
Correspondence to Liuyong Hu or Chengzhou Zhu.
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Nature Communications thanks Lamberti Francesco, Liang Tang and Xiaoqian Tang for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.
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Cite this article
Qin, Y., Chen, Y., Wan, H. et al. Reversible bismuth reduction-driven dark photoelectrochemistry. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-68359-7
Received: 20 July 2025
Accepted: 05 January 2026
Published: 22 January 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-68359-7