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Drs. Marivi Fernández-Serra, Cyrus Dreyer, Matt Dawber, and collaborators have revealed the mechanism behind the splitting of water at the surface of strontium titanate (SrTiO3).

Water at the surface of the SrTiO3 can use the energy of an incoming photon to split into hydrogen (H2), an eco-friendly fuel source, and oxygen.

Similar methods of splitting water have faced difficulties achieving the needed efficiency to be practical, and the exact mechanism of the splitting was not well understood. This new research could pave the way for more systematic searches of efficient photocatalyst surfaces.

The published article has been highlighted by PRX here.