Agenda

Conferenza tenuta dal dr. Alberto Vomiero
Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics
Luleå University of Technology, Sweden

Composite ceramic nanostructures can be efficiently applied for Sunlight conversion. In most of the applied systems, like excitonic solar cells and photoelectrochemical cells to produce solar fuels, nanomaterials can play a critical role in boosting photoconversion efficiency by ameliorating the processes of charge photogeneration, exciton dissociation and charge transport. Several strategies can be pursued, including broadening of light absorbance to reduce solar light losses, fastening exciton dissociation and charge injection from the photoactive medium to the charge transporting materials, reducing charge recombination during charge transport and collection at the electrodes. In this lecture, a few examples of application of nanocomposites will be thoroughly discussed, [1-3] highlighting the role of interface engineering to improve the efficiency of energy conversion from Sunlight to electric power and/or chemical fuels.