Band offsets of novel CoTiO₃/Ag₃VO₄ heterojunction measured by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Highlights: • Band lineup of novel CoTiO₃/Ag₃VO₄ composite is determined by semidirect XPS method. • The composite forms a type-II staggered heterojunction. • Valence and conduction-band offsets are 0.2 ± 0.3 and −0.6 ± 0.3 eV, respectively. • Band lineup determination is needed for understanding charge transfer at interfaces. - Abstract: The energy band diagram and band offsets of the novel CoTiO₃/Ag₃VO₄ heterojunction photocatalyst are investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for the first time. Excluding the strain effect, the valence-band and conduction-band offsets are determined to be 0.2 ± 0.3 eV and −0.6 ± 0.3 eV, respectively. The CoTiO₃/Ag₃VO₄ composite forms a type-II heterojunction, for which the photogenerated charge carriers could be effectively separated. The results suggest that determination of the energy band structure is crucial for understanding the photogenerated charge transfer mechanism at the interfaces, hence the corresponding photocatalytic activity and would also be beneficial to the design of new and efficient heterostructure-based photocatalysts