Lithium niobate on insulator: an emerging nanophotonic crystal for optimized light control

• Midhun Murali,
• Amit Banerjee and
• Tanmoy Basu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1415–1426, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.114

• to capture a wider range of sunlight compared to traditional materials, potentially leading to higher solar energy conversion efficiency [43]. Bae et al. focussed on lead sulfide (PbS) CQDs solar cells where they addressed the major challenge of charge carrier recombination which limits the

Tunable high-quality-factor absorption in a graphene monolayer based on quasi-bound states in the continuum

• Jun Wu,
• Yasong Sun,
• Feng Wu,
• Biyuan Wu and
• Xiaohu Wu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 675–681, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.59

• energy conversion, while narrow-band absorbers [9][10][11][12] have great potential in sensing and monochromatic light detecting. An example is the application of narrow-band absorbers in refractive index sensing [13]. When the absorbers are surrounded by gas or liquid, the resonance wavelength will

• stealth, infrared detectors, thermophotovoltaic cells, and thermal emitters. According to their spectral bandwidths, the absorbers can be classified as broad-band absorbers and narrow-band absorbers [1][2][3][4]. In general, broad-band absorbers [5][6][7][8] are used for electromagnetic cloaking and solar

Tin dioxide nanomaterial-based photocatalysts for nitrogen oxide oxidation: a review

• Viet Van Pham,
• Hong-Huy Tran,
• Thao Kim Truong and
• Thi Minh Cao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 96–113, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.7

• vacancy defects (OVs) [15][16]. Therefore, SnO2 is considered a potential material in various technological fields such as catalysis, optoelectronic devices, rechargeable lithium batteries, electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, solar energy conversion, and gas sensing [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. In the

First-principles study of the structural, optoelectronic and thermophysical properties of the π-SnSe for thermoelectric applications

• Muhammad Atif Sattar,
• Najwa Al Bouzieh,
• Maamar Benkraouda and
• Noureddine Amrane

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1101–1114, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.82

• transition between Se p to Sn p orbitals at the near-infrared region, making it promising for applications in solar energy conversion. This work provides a promising platform for performing experimental work on thermoelectric applications of π-SnSe. Besides, the remarkable thermoelectric and optoelectronic

Structural and electronic properties of SnO₂ doped with non-metal elements

• Jianyuan Yu,
• Yingeng Wang,
• Yan Huang,
• Xiuwen Wang,
• Jing Guo,
• Jingkai Yang and
• Hongli Zhao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1321–1328, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.116

• ) [1][2][3]. TCFs serve as the front electrode of thin film solar cells. Up to now, the solar energy conversion efficiency is about 23.3% [4], and it is important to increase the photovoltaic power generation efficiency, as well as the performance of the front electrode. The intrinsic semiconductor

Fabrication of Ag-modified hollow titania spheres via controlled silver diffusion in Ag–TiO₂ core–shell nanostructures

• Bartosz Bartosewicz,
• Malwina Liszewska,
• Bogusław Budner,
• Marta Michalska-Domańska,
• Krzysztof Kopczyński and
• Bartłomiej J. Jankiewicz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 141–146, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.12

• (HSs) have received increasing attention due to their potential application in a variety of areas [1][2][3][4] such as solar energy conversion or photocatalysis [2][5][6][7]. Among them, of great interest are TiO2 HSs modified with plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs), which allow for the combination of the

Green and scalable synthesis of nanocrystalline kuramite

• Andrea Giaccherini,
• Giuseppe Cucinotta,
• Stefano Martinuzzi,
• Enrico Berretti,
• Werner Oberhauser,
• Alessandro Lavacchi,
• Giovanni Orazio Lepore,
• Giordano Montegrossi,
• Maurizio Romanelli,
• Antonio De Luca,
• Massimo Innocenti,
• Vanni Moggi Cecchi,
• Matteo Mannini,
• Antonella Buccianti and
• Francesco Di Benedetto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2073–2083, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.202

• on flexible surfaces. Most of the efforts in this research field aim at the optimal trade-off between the solar energy conversion performance, scalability and sustainability of these nanocrystalline multinary sulfides [34][35]. To this end, researchers have produced many different polymorphic and

Reduced graphene oxide supported C₃N₄ nanoflakes and quantum dots as metal-free catalysts for visible light assisted CO₂ reduction

• Md Rakibuddin and
• Haekyoung Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 448–458, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.44

• -C3N4 from 2D sheets by facile hydrothermal reactions. Recently, solar energy conversion using g-C3N4 QDs has attracted significant attention [20][21][22]. Besides, g-C3N4 has also been coupled with noble-metal-free compounds for higher catalytic activity [23][24][25][26][27]. Despite all these

Electrolyte tuning in dye-sensitized solar cells with N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) iron(II) sensitizers

• Mariia Karpacheva,
• Catherine E. Housecroft and
• Edwin C. Constable

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 3069–3078, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.285

• ; N-heterocyclic carbene iron(II) complex; solar energy conversion; sustainable energy; Introduction The field of dye sensitized solar cells (DSCs) has developed significantly [1][2][3] since the pioneering publication of O’Regan and Grätzel [4]. Photoconversion efficiencies (η) of ≈11–14% have been

Cr(VI) remediation from aqueous environment through modified-TiO₂-mediated photocatalytic reduction

• Rashmi Acharya,
• Brundabana Naik and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1448–1470, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.137

• , which is only 3% of the total solar radiation, resulting in limited use of pure TiO2 in solar energy conversion [76][77][78]. (ii) The recombination of excited charge carriers in bare TiO2 takes place at such a high rate that more than 90% of the recombination processes occur in 10 ns [79], leaving

Review on optofluidic microreactors for artificial photosynthesis

• Xiaowen Huang,
• Jianchun Wang,
• Tenghao Li,
• Jianmei Wang,
• Min Xu,
• Weixing Yu,
• Abdel El Abed and
• Xuming Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 30–41, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.5

• photocatalytic efficiency [90][91][92][93][94]. Besides, biomimetic or bioinspired strategies for the synthesis of semiconductor materials represents a significant advancement in the development of high-efficiency and cost-effective visible-light photocatalysts for solar energy conversion [65][66][67]. Given the

Two-dimensional carbon-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications

• Suneel Kumar,
• Ashish Kumar,
• Ashish Bahuguna,
• Vipul Sharma and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1571–1600, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.159

Synthesis of graphene–transition metal oxide hybrid nanoparticles and their application in various fields

• Arpita Jana,
• Elke Scheer and
• Sebastian Polarz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 688–714, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.74

• of 12.1% with excellent thermal stability [209]. Cuprous oxide (Cu2O) is a p-type semiconductor and is used for solar energy conversion, as sensors and for photocatalytic degradation. The controlled synthesis of Cu2O results in a vast palette of architectures including nanocubes, nanocages, nanowires

Influence of hydrofluoric acid treatment on electroless deposition of Au clusters

• Rachela G. Milazzo,
• Antonio M. Mio,
• Giuseppe D’Arrigo,
• Emanuele Smecca,
• Alessandra Alberti,
• Gabriele Fisichella,
• Filippo Giannazzo,
• Corrado Spinella and
• Emanuele Rimini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 183–189, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.19

• excellent at scattering and absorbing visible light [6][7][8]. For these reasons, they have found an interesting application in the field of metal–semiconductor hybrid structures for solar energy conversion [9][10]. Among the different adopted methods to deposit Au nanoclusters on a substrate, electroless

Transformations of PTCDA structures on rutile TiO₂ induced by thermal annealing and intermolecular forces

• Szymon Godlewski,
• Jakub S. Prauzner-Bechcicki,
• Thilo Glatzel,
• Ernst Meyer and
• Marek Szymoński

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1498–1507, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.155

• example, titanium dioxide surfaces are exceptionally useful in various applications, including the catalysis, solar energy conversion, gas sensing and others [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Merging two classes of materials, i.e., metal oxide surfaces with organic molecules, seems to be one of the most

Donor–acceptor graphene-based hybrid materials facilitating photo-induced electron-transfer reactions

• Anastasios Stergiou,
• Georgia Pagona and
• Nikos Tagmatarchis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1580–1589, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.170

• another novel nanohybrid material (Figure 9). A slow recombination of the photoexcited charges was identified and demonstrates the high potential of the hybrid material for immediate applications in photocatalysis as well as in solar energy conversion schemes [62]. The Ru(bpy)2(py)Cl–graphene hybrid

Photocatalysis

• Rong Xu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1071–1072, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.119

• and morphological tuning, in particular for hybrid materials systems such as Ag–ZnO, VTi/MCM-41, are important toward achieving higher solar energy conversion efficiencies. In a couple of reports, materials alternative to conventional metal oxides, for example, reduced graphene oxide, graphene quantum

Functionalized nanostructures for enhanced photocatalytic performance under solar light

• Liejin Guo,
• Dengwei Jing,
• Maochang Liu,
• Yubin Chen,
• Shaohua Shen,
• Jinwen Shi and
• Kai Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 994–1004, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.113

• hydrogen production. These factors are significantly beneficial for their further application in the field of solar energy conversion. Crystal facets engineering As we know, the surface of a given semiconductor nanocrystal usually consists of certain crystal facets that occupy specific coordination numbers

Optical modeling-assisted characterization of dye-sensitized solar cells using TiO₂ nanotube arrays as photoanodes

• Jung-Ho Yun,
• Il Ku Kim,
• Yun Hau Ng,
• Lianzhou Wang and
• Rose Amal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 895–902, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.102

• arrays as photoelectrodes. The DSSC with 3.3 μm long TNT arrays shows a short-circuit density (Jsc) of 1.32 mA·cm−2, an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.76 V, and a fill factor (FF) of 0.65, with a solar energy conversion efficiency of 0.65%. Meanwhile, 11.5 and 20.6 μm long TNT array-based DSSCs

• enhanced solar energy conversion efficiencies of 2.7% for the 11.5 μm long TNT array-based DSSC and 3.87% for the 20.6 μm long TNT array-based DSSC. Considering the results in Figure 2 and Table 1, the improved Jsc with the increase in the lengths of TNT arrays can be attributed to a larger surface area

Nanostructure sensitization of transition metal oxides for visible-light photocatalysis

• Hongjun Chen and
• Lianzhou Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 696–710, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.82

• Hongjun Chen Lianzhou Wang Nanomaterials Centre, School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia 10.3762/bjnano.5.82 Abstract To better utilize the sunlight for efficient solar energy conversion, the research on visible-light active

• photocatalytic process and the rational design of visible-light photocatalysts with a high conversion efficiency may lead to an important role of nanostructure photosensitization in visible-light photocatalysis for efficient solar energy conversion. Schematic steps for the photocatalytic reactions occuring on

Ellipsometry and XPS comparative studies of thermal and plasma enhanced atomic layer deposited Al₂O₃-films

• Jörg Haeberle,
• Karsten Henkel,
• Hassan Gargouri,
• Franziska Naumann,
• Bernd Gruska,
• Michael Arens,
• Massimo Tallarida and
• Dieter Schmeißer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 732–742, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.83

• solar energy conversion systems like dye sensitized solar cells [11][12] and water splitting devices [13] or lithium ion batteries [14]. Here, in particular the excellent conformability of ALD growth over high surface area materials and its uniformity and self-termination [15] were beneficially applied

Near-field effects and energy transfer in hybrid metal-oxide nanostructures

• Ulrich Herr,
• Barat Achinuq,
• Cahit Benel,
• Giorgos Papageorgiou,
• Manuel Goncalves,
• Johannes Boneberg,
• Paul Leiderer,
• Paul Ziemann,
• Peter Marek and
• Horst Hahn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 306–317, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.34

• , it is clear that the realization of nanotechnology-based approaches to efficient solar-energy conversion depends on a thorough understanding of the individual steps of the energy-transfer processes involved. As already mentioned, these include the absorption process itself, which may be modified by