Passive Gate-Tunable Kinetic Photovoltage along Semiconductor-Water Interfaces

Moving boundaries of electric double layer at solid–liquid interface enables unprecedented persistent energy conversion and provokes a kinetic photovoltaic effect by moving an illumination region along the semiconductor-water interface. Here, we report a transistor-inspired gate modulation of kinetic photovoltage by applying a bias at the semiconductor-water interface. The kinetic photovoltage of both p-type and n-type silicon samples can be facilely switched on/off, stemming from the electrical-field-modulated surface band bending. In contrast to the function of solid-state transistors relying on external sources, passive gate modulation of the kinetic photovoltage is achieved simply by introducing a counter electrode with materials of desired electrochemical potential. This architecture provides the ability to modulate the kinetic photovoltage over three orders of magnitude and opens up a new way for self-powered optoelectronic logic devices.