Potential profiles near the nano-patterned semiconductor–electrolyte interface

Nanostructured semiconductor–electrolyte interfaces are of high current interest due to novel physics and potential applications. The understanding of the corresponding potential profiles is, however, lacking. Our calculations illustrate the specifics of the potential profiles in a semiconductor near the charged nano-patterned interface separating a semiconductor and electrolyte. The lateral size of patterns is considered to be appreciably larger than the double-layer thickness. Despite this condition, the potential profiles are found to change in both directions on the length scale comparable to the size of patterns. The identified gradients in the potential profiles may be useful in applications including, e.g., electron–hole pair excitation and separation.