THE POTENTIAL DISTRIBUTION AT THE SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTION INTERFACE/

In semiconductor electrochemistry there is considerable confusion conc erning the potential distribution at the semiconductor/solution interf ace under weak depletion and accumulation conditions. The applied pote ntial is partitioned between the space charge layer in the semiconduct or and the Helmholtz layer on the solution side of the interface. Unde r deep depletion conditions, a change in the applied potential usually appears across the space charge layer and the band bending can be det ermined using the Mott-Schottky relation. Under conditions of weak dep letion or accumulation, however, the applied potential is partitioned between the two double layers and determination of band bending is not straightforward. In this paper, expressions for the dependence of the band bending on the applied potential are derived and the consequence s for charge-transfer processes are discussed.