Reduced graphene oxides modified Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$ nanosheets for rapid photo-thermoelectric catalytic therapy of bacteria-infected wounds

Temperature variation-induced thermoelectric catalytic efficiency of thermoelectric material is simultaneously restricted by its electrical conductivity, Seebeck coefficient, and thermal conductivity. Herein, Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$ nanosheets are in situ grown on reduced graphene oxides (rGO) to generate an efficient photo-thermoelectric catalyst (rGO-Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$). This system exhibits phonon scattering effect and extra carrier transport channels induced by the formed heterointerface between rGO and Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$, which improves the power factor value and reduces thermal conductivity, thus enhancing the thermoelectric performance of 2.13 times than single Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$. The photo-thermoelectric catalysis of rGO-Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$ significantly improves the reactive oxygen species yields, resulting from the effective electron-hole separation caused by the unique thermoelectric field and heterointerfaces of rGO-Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$. Correspondingly, the electrospinning membranes containing rGO-Bi${}_2$Te${}_3$ nanosheets exhibit high antibacterial efficiency in vivo (99.35 ± 0.29%), accelerated tissue repair ability, and excellent biosafety. This study provides an insight into heterointerface design in photo-thermoelectric catalysis. (© 2022 Wiley‐VCH GmbH)