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Wang X, Gao S, Ma J. Schottky barrier effect on plasmon-induced charge transfer. NANOSCALE 2023; 15:1754-1762. [PMID: 36598756 DOI: 10.1039/d2nr05937a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Plasmon-induced charge transfer causes electron-hole spatial separation at the metal-semiconductor interface, which plays a key role in photocatalytic and photovoltaic applications. The Schottky barrier formed at the metal-semiconductor interface can modify the hot carrier dynamics. Taking the Ag-TiO2 system as an example, we have investigated plasmon-induced charge transfer at the Schottky junction using quantum mechanical simulations. We find that the Schottky barrier induced by n-type doping enhances the electron transfer and that induced by p-type doping enhances the hole transfer, which is attributed to the shift of the Fermi energy and the band bending of the Schottky junction at the interface. The Schottky barrier also modifies the layer distribution of hot carriers. In particular, for the system with a large band bending, there exists electron-hole spatial separation inside the TiO2 substrate. Our results reveal the mechanism and dynamics of charge transfer at the Schottky junction, and pave the way for manipulating plasmon-assisted photocatalytic and photovoltaic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinxin Wang
- Key Lab of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurement (MOE), School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China.
| | - Shiwu Gao
- Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing, 100193, China.
| | - Jie Ma
- Key Lab of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurement (MOE), School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China.
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Wu S, Chen Y, Gao S. Plasmonic Photocatalysis with Nonthermalized Hot Carriers. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2022; 129:086801. [PMID: 36053692 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.129.086801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Hot carriers generated by plasmonic damping have been suggested to promote photocatalysis, yet it remains unclear how the nonthermalized hot carriers dynamically activate and promote the energy transfer processes. Here, we present an Anderson-Newns model to describe the vibrational excitation and bond dissociation induced by plasmonic hot carriers. The nonthermal distribution of the hot carriers generated by plasmon damping is accounted for on equal footing with thermal carriers at a given temperature in the electron-molecule scattering. We found that the nonthermal electrons in the high energy region can, albeit in much smaller populations, provide an efficient and dominant channel for photodissociation especially in the low-temperature and quantum plasmon regime. Our model captures the wavelength dependence and reproduces the enhancement factors observed by experiments for oxygen dissociation on silver nanoparticles. It also paves a way to harvesting nonthermal plasmonic energy for photocatalysis in the quantum regime.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengxiang Wu
- Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Yu Chen
- Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Shiwu Gao
- Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing, 100193, China
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Ninakanti R, Dingenen F, Borah R, Peeters H, Verbruggen SW. Plasmonic Hybrid Nanostructures in Photocatalysis: Structures, Mechanisms, and Applications. Top Curr Chem (Cham) 2022; 380:40. [PMID: 35951165 DOI: 10.1007/s41061-022-00390-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
(Sun)Light is an abundantly available sustainable source of energy that has been used in catalyzing chemical reactions for several decades now. In particular, studies related to the interaction of light with plasmonic nanostructures have been receiving increased attention. These structures display the unique property of localized surface plasmon resonance, which converts light of a specific wavelength range into hot charge carriers, along with strong local electromagnetic fields, and/or heat, which may all enhance the reaction efficiency in their own way. These unique properties of plasmonic nanoparticles can be conveniently tuned by varying the metal type, size, shape, and dielectric environment, thus prompting a research focus on rationally designed plasmonic hybrid nanostructures. In this review, the term "hybrid" implies nanomaterials that consist of multiple plasmonic or non-plasmonic materials, forming complex configurations in the geometry and/or at the atomic level. We discuss the synthetic techniques and evolution of such hybrid plasmonic nanostructures giving rise to a wide variety of material and geometric configurations. Bimetallic alloys, which result in a new set of opto-physical parameters, are compared with core-shell configurations. For the latter, the use of metal, semiconductor, and polymer shells is reviewed. Also, more complex structures such as Janus and antenna reactor composites are discussed. This review further summarizes the studies exploiting plasmonic hybrids to elucidate the plasmonic-photocatalytic mechanism. Finally, we review the implementation of these plasmonic hybrids in different photocatalytic application domains such as H2 generation, CO2 reduction, water purification, air purification, and disinfection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajeshreddy Ninakanti
- Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL), Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
- NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Fons Dingenen
- Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL), Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
- NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rituraj Borah
- Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL), Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
- NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Hannelore Peeters
- Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL), Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
- NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Sammy W Verbruggen
- Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL), Department of Bioscience Engineering, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium.
- NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium.
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Ma J, Wang J, Gao S. Effect of light polarization on plasmon-induced charge transfer. J Chem Phys 2022; 156:244704. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0094444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmonic nanoclusters can strongly absorb light energy and generate hot carriers, which have great potentials in photovoltaic and photocatalytic applications. A vital step for those plasmonic applications is the charge transfer at the metal–semiconductor interface. The effect of the light polarization on the charge transfer has not been theoretically investigated so far. Here, we take the Ag–TiO2 system as a model system to study the polarization effect using time-dependent density functional theory simulations. We find that the charge transfer is sensitive to the light polarization, which has its origin in the polarization-dependent hot carrier distributions. For the linearly polarized light, it shows a sine-square dependence on the polar angle, indicating that the charge transfer response to the linear polarization can be decomposed into components perpendicular and parallel to the interface. We also find that there exists directional charge transfer with a circular light polarization. Our results demonstrate that the light polarization can significantly affect the charge transfer behavior and, thus, offer a new degree of freedom to manipulate the plasmonic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Ma
- Key Lab of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurement (MOE), School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Jiayuan Wang
- Key Lab of Advanced Optoelectronic Quantum Architecture and Measurement (MOE), School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Shiwu Gao
- Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing 100193, China
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