Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics

Jing Liu; Heng Zhao; Min Wu; Benoit Van Der Schueren; Yu Li; Olivier Deparis; Jinhua Ye; Geoffrey A. Ozin; Tawfique Hasan; Bao Lian Su

doi:10.1002/adma.201605349

Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics

Jing Liu, Heng Zhao, Min Wu, Benoit Van Der Schueren, Yu Li, Olivier Deparis, Jinhua Ye, Geoffrey A. Ozin, Tawfique Hasan, Bao Lian Su

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

Abstract

Solar light is widely recognized as one of the most valuable renewable energy sources for the future. However, the development of solar-energy technologies is severely hindered by poor energy-conversion efficiencies due to low optical-absorption coefficients and low quantum-conversion yield of current-generation materials. Huge efforts have been devoted to investigating new strategies to improve the utilization of solar energy. Different chemical and physical strategies have been used to extend the spectral range or increase the conversion efficiency of materials, leading to very promising results. However, these methods have now begun to reach their limits. What is therefore the next big concept that could efficiently be used to enhance light harvesting? Despite its discovery many years ago, with the potential for becoming a powerful tool for enhanced light harvesting, the slow-photon effect, a manifestation of light-propagation control due to photonic structures, has largely been overlooked. This review presents theoretical as well as experimental progress on this effect, revealing that the photoreactivity of materials can be dramatically enhanced by exploiting slow photons. It is predicted that successful implementation of this strategy may open a very promising avenue for a broad spectrum of light-energy-conversion technologies.

Original language	English
Article number	1605349
Number of pages	21
Journal	Advanced materials
Volume	29
Issue number	17
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201605349
Publication status	Published - 3 May 2017

Funding

This work was realized in the frame of a program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team (IRT_15R52) of the Chinese Ministry of Education. B.V.d.S. acknowledges FRIA funding from the Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS). T.H. acknowledges support from a Royal Academy of Engineering Fellowship, B.L.S. acknowledges the Chinese Central Government for an \u201CExpert of the State\u201D position in the Program of the \u201CThousand Talents\u201D, the Chinese Ministry of Education for a Changjiang Scholar position at the Wuhan University of Technology, a Clare Hall Life Membership, University of Cambridge. This work was also financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.51502225), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2013-YB-024, 2014-IV-057), Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2015CFB516), and Self-determined and Innovative Research Funds of the SKLWUT (2015-ZD-7) and International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (ISTC-2015DFE52870). G.A.O. is a Government of Canada Research Chair in Materials Chemistry and Nanochemistry. Financial support for this work was provided by the Ontario Ministry of Research Innovation (MRI); Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure (MEDI); Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change; Connaught Global Challenge Fund; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

Funders	Funder number
Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team	IRT_15R52
Chinese Central Government
Connaught Global Challenge Fund
Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change
SKLWUT	2015-ZD-7
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Royal Academy of Engineering
University of Cambridge
National Natural Science Foundation of China	51502225
Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China
Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique F.R.S.-FNRS
Fonds pour la Formation à la Recherche dans l’Industrie et dans l’Agriculture
Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province	2015CFB516
Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico
Wuhan University of Technology
Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities	2013-YB-024, 2014-IV-057
International Science and Technology Cooperation Programme	ISTC-2015DFE52870
Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation
Medical Research Institute Sri Lanka

Keywords

photocatalysis
photonic crystals
photovoltaics
slow photons

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1002/adma.201605349

Cite this

@article{4dffc19c6da349a295d06923708fbc85,

title = "Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics",

abstract = "Solar light is widely recognized as one of the most valuable renewable energy sources for the future. However, the development of solar-energy technologies is severely hindered by poor energy-conversion efficiencies due to low optical-absorption coefficients and low quantum-conversion yield of current-generation materials. Huge efforts have been devoted to investigating new strategies to improve the utilization of solar energy. Different chemical and physical strategies have been used to extend the spectral range or increase the conversion efficiency of materials, leading to very promising results. However, these methods have now begun to reach their limits. What is therefore the next big concept that could efficiently be used to enhance light harvesting? Despite its discovery many years ago, with the potential for becoming a powerful tool for enhanced light harvesting, the slow-photon effect, a manifestation of light-propagation control due to photonic structures, has largely been overlooked. This review presents theoretical as well as experimental progress on this effect, revealing that the photoreactivity of materials can be dramatically enhanced by exploiting slow photons. It is predicted that successful implementation of this strategy may open a very promising avenue for a broad spectrum of light-energy-conversion technologies.",

keywords = "photocatalysis, photonic crystals, photovoltaics, slow photons",

author = "Jing Liu and Heng Zhao and Min Wu and {Van Der Schueren}, Benoit and Yu Li and Olivier Deparis and Jinhua Ye and Ozin, {Geoffrey A.} and Tawfique Hasan and Su, {Bao Lian}",

note = "Funding Information: This work was realized in the frame of a program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team (IRT_15R52) of the Chinese Ministry of Education. B.V.d.S. acknowledges FRIA funding from the Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS). T.H. acknowledges support from a Royal Academy of Engineering Fellowship, B.L.S. acknowledges the Chinese Central Government for an ?Expert of the State? position in the Program of the ?Thousand Talents?, the Chinese Ministry of Education for a Changjiang Scholar position at the Wuhan University of Technology, a Clare Hall Life Membership, University of Cambridge. This work was also financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.51502225), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2013-YB-024, 2014-IV-057), Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2015CFB516), and Self-determined and Innovative Research Funds of the SKLWUT (2015-ZD-7) and International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (ISTC-2015DFE52870). G.A.O. is a Government of Canada Research Chair in Materials Chemistry and Nanochemistry. Financial support for this work was provided by the Ontario Ministry of Research Innovation (MRI); Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure (MEDI); Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change; Connaught Global Challenge Fund; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim Copyright: Copyright 2017 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.",

year = "2017",

month = may,

day = "3",

doi = "10.1002/adma.201605349",

language = "English",

volume = "29",

journal = "Advanced materials",

issn = "0935-9648",

publisher = "Wiley-Blackwell",

number = "17",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics

AU - Liu, Jing

AU - Zhao, Heng

AU - Wu, Min

AU - Van Der Schueren, Benoit

AU - Li, Yu

AU - Deparis, Olivier

AU - Ye, Jinhua

AU - Ozin, Geoffrey A.

AU - Hasan, Tawfique

AU - Su, Bao Lian

N1 - Funding Information: This work was realized in the frame of a program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team (IRT_15R52) of the Chinese Ministry of Education. B.V.d.S. acknowledges FRIA funding from the Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS). T.H. acknowledges support from a Royal Academy of Engineering Fellowship, B.L.S. acknowledges the Chinese Central Government for an ?Expert of the State? position in the Program of the ?Thousand Talents?, the Chinese Ministry of Education for a Changjiang Scholar position at the Wuhan University of Technology, a Clare Hall Life Membership, University of Cambridge. This work was also financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.51502225), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2013-YB-024, 2014-IV-057), Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2015CFB516), and Self-determined and Innovative Research Funds of the SKLWUT (2015-ZD-7) and International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (ISTC-2015DFE52870). G.A.O. is a Government of Canada Research Chair in Materials Chemistry and Nanochemistry. Financial support for this work was provided by the Ontario Ministry of Research Innovation (MRI); Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure (MEDI); Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change; Connaught Global Challenge Fund; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). Publisher Copyright: © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim Copyright: Copyright 2017 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

PY - 2017/5/3

Y1 - 2017/5/3

N2 - Solar light is widely recognized as one of the most valuable renewable energy sources for the future. However, the development of solar-energy technologies is severely hindered by poor energy-conversion efficiencies due to low optical-absorption coefficients and low quantum-conversion yield of current-generation materials. Huge efforts have been devoted to investigating new strategies to improve the utilization of solar energy. Different chemical and physical strategies have been used to extend the spectral range or increase the conversion efficiency of materials, leading to very promising results. However, these methods have now begun to reach their limits. What is therefore the next big concept that could efficiently be used to enhance light harvesting? Despite its discovery many years ago, with the potential for becoming a powerful tool for enhanced light harvesting, the slow-photon effect, a manifestation of light-propagation control due to photonic structures, has largely been overlooked. This review presents theoretical as well as experimental progress on this effect, revealing that the photoreactivity of materials can be dramatically enhanced by exploiting slow photons. It is predicted that successful implementation of this strategy may open a very promising avenue for a broad spectrum of light-energy-conversion technologies.

AB - Solar light is widely recognized as one of the most valuable renewable energy sources for the future. However, the development of solar-energy technologies is severely hindered by poor energy-conversion efficiencies due to low optical-absorption coefficients and low quantum-conversion yield of current-generation materials. Huge efforts have been devoted to investigating new strategies to improve the utilization of solar energy. Different chemical and physical strategies have been used to extend the spectral range or increase the conversion efficiency of materials, leading to very promising results. However, these methods have now begun to reach their limits. What is therefore the next big concept that could efficiently be used to enhance light harvesting? Despite its discovery many years ago, with the potential for becoming a powerful tool for enhanced light harvesting, the slow-photon effect, a manifestation of light-propagation control due to photonic structures, has largely been overlooked. This review presents theoretical as well as experimental progress on this effect, revealing that the photoreactivity of materials can be dramatically enhanced by exploiting slow photons. It is predicted that successful implementation of this strategy may open a very promising avenue for a broad spectrum of light-energy-conversion technologies.

KW - photocatalysis

KW - photonic crystals

KW - photovoltaics

KW - slow photons

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85011829457&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.mendeley.com/research/slow-photons-photocatalysis-photovoltaics

U2 - 10.1002/adma.201605349

DO - 10.1002/adma.201605349

M3 - Review article

SN - 0935-9648

VL - 29

JO - Advanced materials

JF - Advanced materials

IS - 17

M1 - 1605349

ER -

Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Physical Chemistry and characterization(PC2)

Cite this

Slow Photons for Photocatalysis and Photovoltaics

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Equipment

Physical Chemistry and characterization(PC2)

Cite this