| 1. |
- Abdellah, Mohamed, et al.
(författare)
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Competitive Hole Transfer from CdSe Quantum Dots to Thiol Ligands in CdSe-Cobaloxime Sensitized NiO Films Used as Photocathodes for H-2 Evolution
- 2017
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Ingår i: ACS Energy Letters. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 2380-8195. ; 2:11, s. 2576-2580
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Quantum dot (QD) sensitized NiO photocathodes rely on efficient photoinduced hole injection into the NiO valence band. A system of a mesoporous NiO film co-sensitized with CdSe QDs and a molecular proton reduction catalyst was studied. While successful electron transfer from the excited QDs to the catalyst is observed, most of the photogenerated holes are instead quenched very rapidly (ps) by hole trapping at the surface thiols of the capping agent used as linker molecules. We confirmed our conclusion by first using a thiol free capping agent and second varying the thiol concentration on the QD's surface. The later resulted in faster hole trapping as the thiol concentration increased. We suggest that this hole trapping by the linker limits the H-2 yield for this photocathode in a device.
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| 2. |
- Abdellah, Mohamed, et al.
(författare)
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Drastic difference between hole and electron injection through the gradient shell of CdxSeyZn1−xS1−y quantum dots
- 2017
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Ingår i: Nanoscale. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 2040-3364 .- 2040-3372. ; 9:34, s. 12503-12508
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ultrafast fluorescence spectroscopy was used to investigate the hole injection in CdxSeyZn1-xS1-y gradient core-shell quantum dot (CSQD) sensitized p-type NiO photocathodes. A series of CSQDs with a wide range of shell thicknesses was studied. Complementary photoelectrochemical cell measurements were carried out to confirm that the hole injection from the active core through the gradient shell to NiO takes place. The hole injection from the valence band of the QDs to NiO depends much less on the shell thickness when compared to the corresponding electron injection to n-type semiconductor (ZnO). We simulate the charge carrier tunneling through the potential barrier due to the gradient shell by numerically solving the Schrodinger equation. The details of the band alignment determining the potential barrier are obtained from X-ray spectroscopy measurements. The observed drastic differences between the hole and electron injection are consistent with a model where the hole effective mass decreases, while the gradient shell thickness increases.
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| 3. |
- Abdellah, Mohamed, et al.
(författare)
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Time-Resolved IR Spectroscopy Reveals a. Mechanism with TiO2 as a Reversible Electron Acceptor in a TiO2-Re Catalyst System for CO2 Photoreduction
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of the American Chemical Society. - : AMER CHEMICAL SOC. - 0002-7863 .- 1520-5126. ; 139:3, s. 1226-1232
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Attaching the phosphonated molecular catalyst [(ReBr)-Br-I(bpy)-(CO)(3)](0) to the wide-bandgap semiconductor TiO2 strongly enhances the rate of visible-light-driven reduction of CO2 to CO in dimethylformamide with triethanolamine (TEOA) as sacrificial electron donor. Herein, we show by transient mid-IR spectroscopy that the mechanism of catalyst photoreduction is initiated by ultrafast electron injection into TiO2, followed by rapid (ps-ns) and sequential two-electron oxidation of TEOA that is coordinated to the Re center. The injected electrons can be stored in the conduction band of TiO2 on an ms-s time scale, and we propose that they lead to further reduction of the Re catalyst and completion of the catalytic cycle. Thus, the excited Re catalyst gives away one electron and would eventually get three electrons back. The function of an electron reservoir would represent a role for TiO2 in photocatalytic CO2 reduction that has previously not been considered. We propose that the increase in photocatalytic activity upon heterogenization of the catalyst to TiO2 is due to the slow charge recombination and the high oxidative power of the Re-II species after electron injection as compared to the excited MLCT state of the unbound Re catalyst or when immobilized on ZrO2, which results in a more efficient reaction with TEOA.
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| 4. |
- Bamini, Sesha, et al.
(författare)
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Time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy reveals the influence of charged sensitizing quantum dots on the electron dynamics in ZnO
- 2017
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Ingår i: Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1463-9076 .- 1463-9084. ; 19:8, s. 6006-6012
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Photoinitiated charge carrier dynamics in ZnO nanoparticles sensitized by CdSe quantum dots is studied using transient absorption spectroscopy and time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy. The evolution of the transient spectra shows that electron injection occurs in a two-step process, where the formation of a charge transfer state (occurring in several picoseconds) is followed by its dissociation within tens of picoseconds. The photoconductivity of electrons injected into the ZnO nanoparticles is lower than that of charges photogenerated directly in ZnO. We conclude that the motion of injected electrons in ZnO nanoparticles is strongly influenced by their interaction with positive charges left in the sensitizing quantum dots.
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| 5. |
- Chen, Junsheng, et al.
(författare)
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Surface plasmon inhibited photo-luminescence activation in CdSe/ZnS core-shell quantum dots
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. - : IOP Publishing. - 0953-8984 .- 1361-648X. ; 28:25
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In a composite film of Cdx Sey Zn1-x S1-y gradient core-shell quantum dots (QDs) and gold nanorods (NRs), the optical properties of the QDs are drastically affected by the plasmonic nanoparticles. We provide a careful study of the two-step formation of the film and its morphology. Subsequently we focus on QD luminescence photoactivation - a process induced by photochemical changes on the QD surface. We observe that even a sparse coverage of AuNRs can completely inhibit the photoactivation of the QDs' emission in the film. We demonstrate that the inhibition can be accounted for by a rapid energy transfer between QDs and AuNRs. Finally, we propose that the behavior of emission photoactivation can be used as a signature to distinguish between energy and electron transfer in the QD-based materials.
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| 6. |
- Cieslak, Anna M., et al.
(författare)
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Ultra long-lived electron-hole separation within water-soluble colloidal ZnO nanocrystals : Prospective Applications For Solar Energy Production
- 2016
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Ingår i: Nano Energy. - : Elsevier BV. - 2211-2855. ; 30, s. 187-192
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Zinc oxide was one of the first semiconductors used in dye-sensitized solar cells but its instability in aqueous media precludes its use for large-scale applications. Herein, we report on a novel ZnO nanocrystal material derived by an organometallic approach that is simultaneously stable and soluble in water due to its carboxylate oligoethylene glycol shell strongly anchored to the inorganic core by the head groups. The resulting unique inorganic core-organic shell interface also stabilizes the photo-generated hole, leading to a dramatic slowing down of charge recombination, which otherwise is a major hurdle in using nanostructured ZnO.
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| 7. |
- Goncalves, Leticia C. P., et al.
(författare)
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Boosting photobioredox catalysis by morpholine electron donors under aerobic conditions
- 2019
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Ingår i: Catalysis Science & Technology. - : Royal Society of Chemistry. - 2044-4753 .- 2044-4761. ; 9:10, s. 2682-2688
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Light-driven reduction of flavins, e.g. FAD or FMN, by sacrificial electron donors emerged as a convenient method to promote biocatalytic transformations. However, flavin activation has been restricted to oxygen-free conditions to prevent enzyme deactivation caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS). Herein, we show that the photoreduction of FMN by morpholines, including 3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid (MOPS), lessens the deactivation of the enoate reductase XenB from Pseudomonas sp. during the stereoselective asymmetric enzymatic reduction of a model ,-unsaturated diketone under aerobic conditions, leading to a 91% GC-yield and a stereoselectivity greater than 94%. The kinetic stability of the thermolabile XenB was increased by more than 20-fold in MOPS buffer compared to that in Tris-HCl buffer, and a pronounced positive effect on the transition midpoint temperature was observed. The reactive form of the FMN photocatalyst is stabilized by the formation of a (3)[FMN--MOPS+] ensemble, which reduces the formation of hydrogen peroxide and other ROS in the presence of oxygen. These results contribute to broaden the application of photobiocatalytic transformations using flavin-dependent reductases.
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| 8. |
- Goncalves, Leticia C. P., et al.
(författare)
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Morpholine-based buffers activate aerobic photobiocatalysis via spin correlated ion pair formation
- 2019
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Ingår i: Catalysis Science & Technology. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 2044-4753 .- 2044-4761. ; 9:6, s. 1365-1371
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The use of enzymes for synthetic applications is a powerful and environmentally-benign approach to increase molecular complexity. Oxidoreductases selectively introduce oxygen and hydrogen atoms into myriad substrates, catalyzing the synthesis of chemical and pharmaceutical building blocks for chemical production. However, broader application of this class of enzymes is limited by the requirements of expensive cofactors and low operational stability. Herein, we show that morpholine-based buffers, especially 3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid (MOPS), promote photoinduced flavoenzyme-catalyzed asymmetric redox transformations by regenerating the flavin cofactor via sacrificial electron donation and by increasing the operational stability of flavin-dependent oxidoreductases. The stabilization of the active forms of flavin by MOPS via formation of the spin correlated ion pair (3)[flavin(-)-MOPS+] ensemble reduces the formation of hydrogen peroxide, circumventing the oxygen dilemma under aerobic conditions detrimental to fragile enzymes.
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| 9. |
- Grigioni, Ivan, et al.
(författare)
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Photoinduced Charge-Tran sfer Dynamics in WO3/BiVO4 Photoanodes Probed through Midinfrared Transient Absorption Spectroscopy
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of the American Chemical Society. - : AMER CHEMICAL SOC. - 0002-7863 .- 1520-5126. ; 140:43, s. 14042-14045
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The dynamics of photopromoted electrons in BiVO4, WO3, and WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction electrodes has been directly probed by transient absorption (TA) midinfrared (mid-IR) spectroscopy in the picosecond to microsecond time range. By comparison of the dynamics recorded with the two individual oxides at 2050 cm(-1) with that of the heterojunction system after excitation at different wavelengths, electron-transfer processes between selectively excited BiVO4 and WO3 have been directly tracked for the first time. These results support the charge carrier interactions which were previously hypothesized by probing the BiVO4 hole dynamics through TA spectroscopy in the visible range. Nanosecond mid-IR TA experiments confirmed that charge carrier separation occurs in WO3/BiVO4 electrodes under visible-light excitation, persisting up to the microsecond time scale.
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| 10. |
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