biostudies-literatureUnknownGao HThe construction of S-scheme heterojunctions is constrained by stringent work function (<i>Φ</i>) matching between oxidation and reduction photocatalysts, which limits material selection. Here, we present an innovative interfacial engineering strategy to overcome <i>Φ</i>-mismatched barriers by introducing a nitrogen-doped carbon (N-C) mediator and Cu nanoparticles at the WO₃/Cu₂O interface. Through a "post-deposition and pyrolysis" approach, we fabricated a tightly integrated Z-scheme WO₃/N-C/Cu/Cu₂O heterojunction, where the N-C layer and metallic Cu synergistically redirect photogenerated carrier recombination, preserving the high redox potentials of WO₃ (VB: +2.62 V) and Cu₂O (CB: -1.41 V). Femtosecond transient absorptiChemical sciencehttps://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC12502197biostudies-literatureConstructing a visible-light-excited Z-scheme heterojunction by engineering the directional N-C/Cu insertion layer: overcoming work function mismatches.PMC12502197Sun LLi JYang LHe XZhan WHan XGao HZhi SZhu QZhao JQin CfalseConstructing a visible-light-excited Z-scheme heterojunction by engineering the directional N-C/Cu insertion layer: overcoming work function mismatches.The construction of S-scheme heterojunctions is constrained by stringent work function (<i>Φ</i>) matching between oxidation and reduction photocatalysts, which limits material selection. Here, we present an innovative interfacial engineering strategy to overcome <i>Φ</i>-mismatched barriers by introducing a nitrogen-doped carbon (N-C) mediator and Cu nanoparticles at the WO₃/Cu₂O interface. Through a "post-deposition and pyrolysis" approach, we fabricated a tightly integrated Z-scheme WO₃/N-C/Cu/Cu₂O heterojunction, where the N-C layer and metallic Cu synergistically redirect photogenerated carrier recombination, preserving the high redox potentials of WO₃ (VB: +2.62 V) and Cu₂O (CB: -1.41 V). Femtosecond transient absorpti2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Sep2026-06-04T08:41:38.39Z2026-05-07T03:09:02.473ZS-EPMC125021974106432510.1039/d5sc05362e