CAS: Novel Plasmon-Assisted Reaction Pathways on Well-Defined TiO2 Single Microcrystals in Realistic Conditions Using in-Situ Spectroscopies

With the support of the Chemical Catalysis program in the Division of Chemistry, Professor Zhenrong Zhang and Dr. Weigang Lu of Baylor University are studying new enabling catalysts based on the novel design of optical materials for highly-efficient photoreactions. Economical plasmonic materials (TiN) will be fabricated in a precisely designed nanostructure form on traditional oxide catalysts to understand new photoreaction pathways. The developed catalysts will advance the field of plasmon-enhanced catalyst research with new catalytic materials and will significantly enhance catalytic efficiencies. The new concepts of catalysis will open the path for improved industrial catalytic processes and new optoelectronic applications. The team will engage in research training activities on advanced imaging and photonic technology for undergraduate students from small four-year schools and public outreach at Baylor’s Mayborn Museum to promote optics and spectroscopy in the Waco community. This funded research project is focused on developing and understanding new photoreaction channels. Zhenrong Zhang and Weigang Lu will utilize economical plasmonic catalyst materials (TiN) and novel designs to enable new plasmon-enhanced pathways and possible manipulation of the reaction processes for highly efficient photocatalytic reactions. The research team will design the distribution of the enhanced electric field surrounding the plasmonic nanostructure to efficiently inject hot electrons from the plasmonic material into the TiO2, fabricate well-designed plasmonic nanostructure arrays on well-defined micro-sized TiO2 crystals, establish efficient plasmon-coupling through spatially-resolved studies, and investigate novel plasmon-assisted photoreaction pathways and mechanisms through in situ microscale and nanoscale studies in ambient and in liquid. This project uniquely integrates the optical functionalities of novel plasmonic materials with well-defined traditional oxide catalysts to develop new photocatalyst functionalities. The proposed work has the potential to advance the field of plasmon-enhanced catalyst research by providing enhanced understanding of reaction mechanisms at nanometer spatial resolution. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.