Proceedings of September Meeting 2016 (NFM16)
Publication date: 14th June 2016
We report on a hybrid material, made by combination of metal oxide semiconductors and nanocarbons (such as carbon nanotubes), that improves the separation of photocarriers through interfacial charge transfer process between both components. A more efficient solar-to-energy conversion is achieved thanks to the huge interface formed in the new hybrid material which presents potential applications in photocatalysis, phoyovoltaic or energy storage. In-situ growth of the metal oxide in the presence of the nanocarbon implies that both phases are in close proximity and constitute an electronic heterojunction.
Here, we present two different system based on metal oxide/carbon nanotubes hybrids that were produced and optimised for 1) the study of photoelectrochemical properties at the interface and 2) their application in photocatalysis. We show the role of the interface in the charge separation processes by studying the heterojunction formed in a hybrid system based on a thin layer of metal oxide semiconductor and macroscopic CNT fibre. An enhancement of photoelectrochemical performance in water oxidation catalyst (WOC) is obtained when the hybrid is used as photoanode.
Additionally, we report on photocatalytic hydrogen production as well as CO2 photoreduction results of hybrids based on inorganic semiconductors of high donor density with nanocarbons such as CNTs. Mesoporous TiO2 fibres with tight interfaces between nanoparticles (that provide better oxide optoelectronic properties than common TiO2 nanoparticles) were hybridised with functionalised carbon nanotubes (CNTs) which facilitates charge separation and transport. Consequently, the conductivity of the hybrid is improved, owing to the presence of additional interfaces that can form internal junction with new electronic states which can trap electrons, increasing photocarriers lifetime and ultimately, enhancing the photocatalytic hydrogen production, presented here.
In conclusion, the design of hybrid architectures by combination of inorganic semiconductor and CNTs provides synergetic effects based on interfacial transfer processes. Photoelectrochemical study of the hybrid reveals that the junction between both materials benefits interfacial charge transfer separation of photocarriers, resulting in an enhancement of photocatalytic performance.
nanoGe is a prestigious brand of successful science conferences that are developed along the year in different areas of the world since 2009. Our worldwide conferences cover cutting-edge materials topics like perovskite solar cells, photovoltaics, optoelectronics, solar fuel conversion, surface science, catalysis and two-dimensional materials, among many others.
Previously nanoGe Spring Meeting (NSM) and nanoGe Fall Meeting (NFM), MATSUS is a multiple symposia conference focused on a broad set of topics of advanced materials preparation, their fundamental properties, and their applications, in fields such as renewable energy, photovoltaics, lighting, semiconductor quantum dots, 2-D materials synthesis, charge carriers dynamics, microscopy and spectroscopy semiconductors fundamentals, etc.
International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics
International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics (HOPV) is celebrated yearly in May. The main topics are the development, function and modeling of materials and devices for hybrid and organic solar cells. The field is now dominated by perovskite solar cells but also other hybrid technologies, as organic solar cells, quantum dot solar cells, and dye-sensitized solar cells and their integration into devices for photoelectrochemical solar fuel production.
Asia-Pacific International Conference on Perovskite, Organic Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics
The main topics of the Asia-Pacific International Conference on Perovskite, Organic Photovoltaics and Optoelectronics (IPEROP) are discussed every year in Asia-Pacific for gathering the recent advances in the fields of material preparation, modeling and fabrication of perovskite and hybrid and organic materials. Photovoltaic devices are analyzed from fundamental physics and materials properties to a broad set of applications. The conference also covers the developments of perovskite optoelectronics, including light-emitting diodes, lasers, optical devices, nanophotonics, nonlinear optical properties, colloidal nanostructures, photophysics and light-matter coupling.
The International Conference on Perovskite Thin Film Photovoltaics Perovskite Photonics and Optoelectronics (NIPHO) is the best place to hear the latest developments in perovskite solar cells as well as on recent advances in the fields of perovskite light-emitting diodes, lasers, optical devices, nanophotonics, nonlinear optical properties, colloidal nanostructures, photophysics and light-matter coupling.