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Spurio E, Pelatti S, D'Addato S, Luches P. Plasmonic properties and stability of Au and Cu nanoparticles embedded in cerium oxide. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2024; 36:375003. [PMID: 38857601 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ad5633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 06/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
With the aim of sensitizing cerium oxide-a very important catalytic material-to visible light, its coupling with Au and Cu nanoparticles is investigated. The samples are grown by physical synthesis by embedding a layer of nanoparticles between two cerium oxide films. The films are controlled in composition byin-situx-ray photoemission spectroscopy and in morphology byex-situscanning electron microscopy. The optical properties as a function of the oxide thickness, investigated by spectrophotometry in the UV-Vis range, are interpreted based on the results of the morphological characterization and of simulations based on the Maxwell Garnett model. The stability of chemical and optical properties after air exposure is also investigated. The results, indicating that stable materials with tuneable optical properties can be obtained, are important in view of the potential application of the investigated systems in photocatalysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleonora Spurio
- Dipartimento FIM, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Istituto Nanoscienze, CNR (NANO-CNR), Modena, Italy
| | - Samuele Pelatti
- Dipartimento FIM, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Istituto Nanoscienze, CNR (NANO-CNR), Modena, Italy
| | - Sergio D'Addato
- Dipartimento FIM, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Istituto Nanoscienze, CNR (NANO-CNR), Modena, Italy
| | - Paola Luches
- Istituto Nanoscienze, CNR (NANO-CNR), Modena, Italy
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2
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Fusco Z, Koenig D, Smith SC, Beck FJ. Ab initio investigation of hot electron transfer in CO 2 plasmonic photocatalysis in the presence of hydroxyl adsorbate. NANOSCALE HORIZONS 2024; 9:1030-1041. [PMID: 38623705 DOI: 10.1039/d4nh00046c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
Photoreduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) on plasmonic structures is of great interest in photocatalysis to aid selectivity. While species commonly found in reaction environments and associated intermediates can steer the reaction down different pathways by altering the potential energy landscape of the system, they are often not addressed when designing efficient plasmonic catalysts. Here, we perform an atomistic study of the effect of the hydroxyl group (OH) on CO2 activation and hot electron generation and transfer using first-principles calculations. We show that the presence of OH is essential in breaking the linear symmetry of CO2, which leads to a charge redistribution and a decrease in the OCO angle to 134°, thereby activating CO2. Analysis of the partial density of states (pDOS) demonstrates that the OH group mediates the orbital hybridization between Au and CO2 resulting in more accessible states, thus facilitating charge transfer. By employing time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT), we quantify the fraction of hot electrons directly generated into hybridized molecular states at resonance, demonstrating a broader energy distribution and an 11% increase in charge-transfer in the presence of OH groups. We further show that the spectral overlap between excitation energy and plasmon resonance plays a critical role in efficiently modulating electron transfer processes. These findings contribute to the mechanistic understanding of plasmon-mediated reactions and demonstrate the importance of co-adsorbed species in tailoring the electron transfer processes, opening new avenues for enhancing selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zelio Fusco
- Renewable Fuel Group, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
| | - Dirk Koenig
- Integrated Materials Design Lab, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Sean C Smith
- Integrated Materials Design Lab, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Fiona Jean Beck
- Renewable Fuel Group, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Computing and Cybernetics, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
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3
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Dall’Osto G, Marsili M, Vanzan M, Toffoli D, Stener M, Corni S, Coccia E. Peeking into the Femtosecond Hot-Carrier Dynamics Reveals Unexpected Mechanisms in Plasmonic Photocatalysis. J Am Chem Soc 2024; 146:2208-2218. [PMID: 38199967 PMCID: PMC10811681 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c12470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 12/23/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Plasmonic-driven photocatalysis may lead to reaction selectivity that cannot be otherwise achieved. A fundamental role is played by hot carriers, i.e., electrons and holes generated upon plasmonic decay within the metal nanostructure interacting with molecular species. Understanding the elusive microscopic mechanism behind such selectivity is a key step in the rational design of hot-carrier reactions. To accomplish that, we present state-of-the-art multiscale simulations, going beyond density functional theory, of hot-carrier injections for the rate-determining step of a photocatalytic reaction. We focus on carbon dioxide reduction, for which it was experimentally shown that the presence of a rhodium nanocube under illumination leads to the selective production of methane against carbon monoxide. We show that selectivity is due to a (predominantly) direct hole injection from rhodium to the reaction intermediate CHO. Unexpectedly, such an injection does not promote the selective reaction path by favoring proper bond breaking but rather by promoting bonding of the proper molecular fragment to the surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Dall’Osto
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche, Università di
Padova, via F. Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Margherita Marsili
- Dipartimento
di Fisica e Astronomia “Augusto Righi”, University of Bologna, Viale Berti Pichat 6/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy
| | - Mirko Vanzan
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche, Università di
Padova, via F. Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
- Dipartimento
di Fisica, University of Milan, Via Giovanni Celoria 16, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Daniele Toffoli
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, University
of Trieste, via L. Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy
| | - Mauro Stener
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, University
of Trieste, via L. Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy
| | - Stefano Corni
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche, Università di
Padova, via F. Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
- Istituto
Nanoscienze-CNR, via
Campi 213/A, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Emanuele Coccia
- Dipartimento
di Scienze Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, University
of Trieste, via L. Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy
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Vanzan M, Gil G, Castaldo D, Nordlander P, Corni S. Energy Transfer to Molecular Adsorbates by Transient Hot Electron Spillover. NANO LETTERS 2023; 23:2719-2725. [PMID: 37010208 PMCID: PMC10103299 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c00013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Hot electron (HE) photocatalysis is one of the most intriguing fields of nanoscience, with a clear potential for technological impact. Despite much effort, the mechanisms of HE photocatalysis are not fully understood. Here we investigate a mechanism based on transient electron spillover on a molecule and subsequent energy release into vibrational modes. We use state-of-the-art real-time Time Dependent Density Functional Theory (rt-TDDFT), simulating the dynamics of a HE moving within linear chains of Ag or Au atoms, on which CO, N2, or H2O are adsorbed. We estimate the energy a HE can release into adsorbate vibrational modes and show that certain modes are selectively activated. The energy transfer strongly depends on the adsorbate, the metal, and the HE energy. Considering a cumulative effect from multiple HEs, we estimate this mechanism can transfer tenths of an eV to molecular vibrations and could play an important role in HE photocatalysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mirko Vanzan
- Department
of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
- Department
of Physics, University of Milan, Via Celoria 16, 20133 Milan, Italy
| | - Gabriel Gil
- Instituto
de Cibernetica, Matematica y Física, Calle E esq 15 Vedado, 10400 La Habana, Cuba
| | - Davide Castaldo
- Department
of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Peter Nordlander
- Department
of Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Stefano Corni
- Department
of Chemical Sciences, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 1, 35131 Padova, Italy
- CNR
Institute of Nanoscience, via Campi 213/A, 41125 Modena, Italy
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Yu Y, Gao L, Niu X, Liu K, Li R, Yang D, Zeng H, Wang HQ, Ni Z, Lu J. Deciphering Adverse Detrapped Hole Transfer in Hot-Electron Photoelectric Conversion at Infrared Wavelengths. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2023; 35:e2210157. [PMID: 36732915 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202210157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 01/01/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Hot-carrier devices are promising alternatives for enabling path breaking photoelectric conversion. However, existing hot-carrier devices suffer from low efficiencies, particularly in the infrared region, and ambiguous physical mechanisms. In this work, the competitive interfacial transfer mechanisms of detrapped holes and hot electrons in hot-carrier devices are discovered. Through photocurrent polarity research and optical-pump-THz-probe (OPTP) spectroscopy, it is verified that detrapped hole transfer (DHT) and hot-electron transfer (HET) dominate the low- and high-density excitation responses, respectively. The photocurrent ratio assigned to DHT and HET increases from 6.6% to over 1133.3% as the illumination intensity decreases. DHT induces severe degeneration of the external quantum efficiency (EQE), especially at low illumination intensities. The EQE of a hot-electron device can theoretically increase by over two orders of magnitude at 10 mW cm-2 through DHT elimination. The OPTP results show that competitive transfer arises from the carrier oscillation type and carrier-density-related Coulomb screening. The screening intensity determines the excitation weight and hot-electron cooling scenes and thereby the transfer dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanfang Yu
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
| | - Lei Gao
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
| | - Xianghong Niu
- New Energy Technology Engineering Laboratory of Jiangsu Province & School of Science, Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Nanjing, 210023, P. R. China
| | - Kaiyang Liu
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
| | - Ruizhi Li
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
| | - Dandan Yang
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225002, P. R. China
- Institute of Optoelectronics and Nanomaterials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing, 210094, P. R. China
| | - Haibo Zeng
- Institute of Optoelectronics and Nanomaterials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing, 210094, P. R. China
| | - Hui-Qiong Wang
- Department of Physics and Department of New Energy Science and Engineering, Xiamen University Malaysia, Sepang, 43900, Malaysia
- Department of Physics, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, P. R. China
| | - Zhenhua Ni
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
- Purple Mountain Laboratories, Nanjing, 211111, P. R. China
| | - Junpeng Lu
- School of Physics and Key Laboratory of MEMS of the Ministry of Education, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, P. R. China
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6
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Kim S, Yoon S. On the Origin of the Plasmonic Properties of Gold Nanoparticles. B KOREAN CHEM SOC 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/bkcs.12349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Seokheon Kim
- Department of Chemistry Chung‐Ang University 84 Heukseok‐ro, Dongjak‐gu, Seoul 06974 Korea
| | - Sangwoon Yoon
- Department of Chemistry Chung‐Ang University 84 Heukseok‐ro, Dongjak‐gu, Seoul 06974 Korea
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Román Castellanos L, Hess O, Lischner J. Dielectric Engineering of Hot-Carrier Generation by Quantized Plasmons in Embedded Silver Nanoparticles. THE JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. C, NANOMATERIALS AND INTERFACES 2021; 125:3081-3087. [PMID: 33613808 PMCID: PMC7885732 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c07617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Revised: 01/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Understanding and controlling properties of plasmon-induced hot carriers is a key step toward next-generation photovoltaic and photocatalytic devices. Here, we uncover a route to engineering hot-carrier generation rates of silver nanoparticles by designed embedding in dielectric host materials. Extending our recently established quantum-mechanical approach to describe the decay of quantized plasmons into hot carriers we capture both external screening by the nanoparticle environment and internal screening by silver d-electrons through an effective electron-electron interaction. We find that hot-carrier generation can be maximized by engineering the dielectric host material such that the energy of the localized surface plasmon coincides with the highest value of the nanoparticle joint density of states. This allows us to uncover a path to control the energy of the carriers and the amount produced, for example, a large number of relatively low-energy carriers are obtained by embedding in strongly screening environments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ortwin Hess
- Department
of Physics, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
- The
Thomas Young Centre for Theory and Simulation of Materials, London E1 4NS, U.K.
- School
of Physics and CRANN Institute, Trinity
College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Johannes Lischner
- The
Thomas Young Centre for Theory and Simulation of Materials, London E1 4NS, U.K.
- Department
of Physics and Materials, Imperial College
London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
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8
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Melle G, Bruno G, Maccaferri N, Iachetta G, Colistra N, Barbaglia A, Dipalo M, De Angelis F. Intracellular Recording of Human Cardiac Action Potentials on Market-Available Multielectrode Array Platforms. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:66. [PMID: 32133349 PMCID: PMC7039818 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.00066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
High quality attenuated intracellular action potentials from large cell networks can be recorded on multi-electrode arrays by means of 3D vertical nanopillars using electrical pulses. However, most of the techniques require complex 3D nanostructures that prevent the straightforward translation into marketable products and the wide adoption in the scientific community. Moreover, 3D nanostructures are often delicate objects that cannot sustain several harsh use/cleaning cycles. On the contrary, laser optoacoustic poration allows the recording of action potentials on planar nanoporous electrodes made of noble metals. However, these constraints of the electrode material and morphology may also hinder the full exploitation of this methodology. Here, we show that optoacoustic poration is also very effective for porating cells on a large family of MEA electrode configurations, including robust electrodes made of nanoporous titanium nitride or disordered fractal-like gold nanostructures. This enables the recording of high quality cardiac action potentials in combination with optoacoustic poration, providing thus attenuated intracellular recordings on various already commercial devices used by a significant part of the research and industrial communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Melle
- DIBRIS, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Giulia Bruno
- DIBRIS, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Nicolò Maccaferri
- Department of Physics and Materials Science, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
| | | | | | - Andrea Barbaglia
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
- Dipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
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9
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Dai X, Sun Y. Reduction of carbon dioxide on photoexcited nanoparticles of VIII group metals. NANOSCALE 2019; 11:16723-16732. [PMID: 31478541 DOI: 10.1039/c9nr05971g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The photocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide on nanoparticles of group VIII transition metals represents an emerging research area in recent years because of their promise in transforming carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into value-added chemicals and fuels with the energy input of light. This mini review summarizes the fundamentals of the reduction of carbon dioxide and addresses how the photoexcitation of the metal nanoparticles can influence the reactions. The important roles of non-thermal hot electrons and photothermal effect in the photocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide are highlighted, and the recent research reported in the literature are overviewed. There are still challenges in characterizing the photocatalytic reactions to distinguish the contributions of non-thermal and photothermal effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinyan Dai
- Department of Chemistry, Temple University, 1901 North 13th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122, USA.
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