CuIr Single-Atom Alloys Prepared by Pulsed Laser Ablation in Liquid for pH-Universal Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

The development of highly active and cost-effective catalysts for the full pH range of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) to meet the industrial application demands is an urgent challenge. In this work, the performance and structure–activity relationships of CuIr alloys prepared by the pulsed laser ablation in liquid technique as full pH range HER catalysts were investigated. Results indicated that Ir is doped into the Cu matrix as single atoms in CuIr-0.1, and CuIr-0.1 single-atom alloys (SAAs) exhibit superior HER performance and stability across the full pH range, with overpotentials of 135, 203, and 172 mV at the current density of 10 mA/cm 2 in acidic, neutral, and alkaline electrolytes, respectively. The enhanced performance of CuIr-0.1 SAAs can be attributed to the abundant active sites and accelerated reaction kinetics brought about by the electronic effects. This work successfully alloyed two immiscible metals to improve the catalytic performance, providing an avenue for the development of highly efficient and versatile HER catalysts for industrial applications.