{
  "abstract": "Sunlight-driven photocatalysis is a leading, high-efficiency technology for environmental remediation, but it requires the development of novel semiconductor materials with improved structural/optical properties. Thanks to their high surface-to-volume ratio, GaN nanowires (NWs) are excellent photocatalyst candidates. Herein, we investigate the relationship between the GaN NW characteristics grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy on Si(111) and their photocatalytic activity for the degradation of the methylene blue at different pH values. Two different sets of samples are considered: GaN NWs surrounded by a 2D-GaN layer at their base and pure GaN NWs. According to X-ray diffraction results, the presence of the 2D-layer at the GaN/Si substrate interface reduces NW tilt and twist, thereby improving optical properties. These improved NW characteristics result in higher reaction rate constants, from 12.19 to 25.51 × 10-4 min-1 corresponding to color removal efficiencies of ~38% and ~ 64%, respectively, after 360 min of simulated sunlight irradiation. Finally, the ability of GaN NWs to degrade organic pollutants in harsh environments (pH 2 and pH 10) was investigated, with results clearly demonstrating that GaN acts as a stable photocatalyst under these conditions, without significant degradation of morphology or optical properties. Our findings suggest that properly engineered nanowires can further improve photodegradation activity under sunlight.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 13,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Cosmin Romanitan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Noëlle Gogneau"
    },
    {
      "name": "Petronela Pascariu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Oana Brincoveanu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Elias Semlali"
    },
    {
      "name": "Laurent Travers"
    },
    {
      "name": "Amel Zorai"
    },
    {
      "name": "Maria Tchernycheva"
    },
    {
      "name": "Corneliu Cojocaru"
    },
    {
      "name": "Iuliana Mihalache"
    },
    {
      "name": "Bogdan Stefan Vasile"
    },
    {
      "name": "Nikolay Djourelov"
    },
    {
      "name": "Marius Stoian"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c4km1ndfg5zmx.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1088/2515-7639/aeb0d2",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "c4km1ndfg5zmx",
  "issns": [
    "2515-7639"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://hal.science/hal-05838351v1",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "hal",
      "0.phys"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2105|Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220673163",
  "pdf_url": "https://hal.science/hal-05838351/document",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-06",
  "publisher": "IOP Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c4km1ndfg5zmx.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:01Z",
      "native_id": "hal-05838351",
      "source": "hal",
      "url": "https://hal.science/hal-05838351v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "hal:0.phys",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "High-photocatalytic activity of PA-MBE grown GaN nanowires for degradation of methylene blue: Influence of the nanowires characteristics and reusability characters",
  "title_text": "High-photocatalytic activity of PA-MBE grown GaN nanowires for degradation of methylene blue: Influence of the nanowires characteristics and reusability characters",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:01Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c4km1ndfg5zmx",
  "venue": "Journal of Physics: Materials",
  "versions": []
}