Efficient WO3 photoanodes fabricated by pulsed laser deposition for photoelectrochemical water splitting with high faradaic efficiency

•γ-Monoclinic WO3 were deposited by means of Pulsed Laser Deposition.•WO3 films showed a columnar shape structure, which resulted to be crucial in the photoanodes performances as the electrolyte was able to penetrate within the columns.•A máximum photocurrent density up to 2.4mAcm−2 were achieved under 1.5G irradiation.•A new stack configuration is presented, which leads to unprecedented photocurrent density of 3.1mAcm−2 for unmodified WO3 photoanodes.