engleski

Use of alternative plasmonic materials for solar energy conversion

Use of sunlight as the basis for renewable and sustainable energy has been acknowledged as one of the cornerstones for climate change mitigation. Efficient solar energy conversion (SEC) will empower photovoltaics, photothermal and hydrogen photogeneration technologies as competitive candidates to replace fossil fuels and decrease greenhouse gas production in a close future. Recently, plasmonics has appeared as a promising pathway to enhance SEC. The strong light-matter interaction that takes place during excitation of plasmon resonances in metal nanostructures may lead to very efficient sunlight harvesting. Although several experiments have proven the benefits of plasmonics for SEC, they are based on scarce and expensive plasmonic materials (gold and silver) and often use technologically demanding nanostructuring methods. We aim to increase SEC efficiency by exploiting the plasmonic properties of widely available materials such as aluminium, copper and their alloys with silver and gold. The materials will be nanostructured using thin film methods and post-deposition treatments that are suitable for low-cost and mass-production of future devices. It is expected that this research will bring the potential of plasmonics beyond the demonstration level and set it on its path towards its implementation in actual solar light harvesting. In the context of this research, we will show some first results concerning chemical synthesis of size and shape controlled plasmonic nanoparticles, as well as first principle simulations of optical properties of above mentioned alloys.

solar energy conversion; plasmonics

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