Improved Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution on Tantalate Perovskites CsTaO₃ and LiTaO₃ by Strain-Induced Vacancies

Tantalate perovskites are potential candidates for photocatalytic hydrogen production without cocatalyst addition; however, these oxides have large bandgaps, which result in their low photocatalytic activity. In this study, to enhance the photocatalytic activity, CsTaO₃ as a potential photocatalyst and LiTaO₃ as a well-known photocatalyst are subjected to severe plastic strain using the high-pressure torsion (HPT) method. Both superstrained tantalates exhibit optical bandgap narrowing and ∼2.5 times enhancement of photocatalytic hydrogen production. Such bandgap narrowing is mainly due to the formation of oxygen vacancies, although nanocrystal formation and partial amorphization also occur by straining. These findings not only introduce CsTaO₃ as a photocatalyst but also confirm the significance of strain-induced vacancies on the photocatalytic activity of perovskites.