Quantitative Detection of Photothermal and Photoelectrocatalytic Effects Induced by SPR from Au@Pt Nanoparticles

Abstract

The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) induced photothermal and photoelectrocatalysis effects are crucial for catalytic reactions in many areas. However, it is still difficult to distinguish these two effects quantitatively. Here we used surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) to detect the photothermal and photoelectrocatalytic effects induced by SPR from Au core Pt shell Nanoparticles (Au@Pt NPs), and calculated the quantitative contribution of the ratio of the photothermal and photoelectrocatalysis effects towards the catalytic activity. The photothermal effect on the nanoparticle surface after illumination is detected by SERS. The photoelectrocatalytic effect generated from SPR is proved by SERS with a probe molecule of p-aminothiophenol (PATP).

Hot‐Electron‐Mediated Photochemical Reactions: Principles, Recent Advances, and Challenges

“…Since 2010, various experimental and theoretical results have supported the production of DMAB from pATP by plasmon-driven surface-catalyzed chemical reactions. [61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72] Adv. Optical Mater.…”

Core–Shell Nanoparticle Clusters Enable Synergistic Integration of Plasmonic and Catalytic Functions in a Single Platform

“…Regarding the mechanism of the plasmon‐enhanced electrocatalytic activity of the Au@Pd NPCs and NPs, it is noteworthy that there was a lag in the catalytic response to visible light irradiation (Figure b,c), suggesting that the primary mechanism of the enhancement is the plasmonic heating like the previous studies, as hot carrier (electron and hole) driven processes are characterized by almost immediate system response. To further verify the underpinning mechanism of the plasmon‐enhanced electrocatalysis, the surface temperatures of the Au@Pd NPCs and NPs after illumination were estimated according to the reported method, in which the final temperature on the surface of nanostructures after illumination is calculated from the SERS peak position of the NC stretching mode, ν(NC), of 4‐methoxyphenyl isocyanide (4‐MPI) adsorbed on nanostructures, as the ν(NC) of 4‐MPI is sensitive to the temperature. As shown in Figure S17 (Supporting Information), the ν(NC) peak of 4‐MPI adsorbed on the Au@Pd NPCs significantly red‐shifted (13 cm −1 ) after 633 nm laser irradiation (0.6 mW) for 70 min compared to the Au@Pd NPs.…”

“…Specifically, core–shell NPs containing Au cores and catalytically active shells showed promoted electrocatalytic performance toward alcohol oxidation under visible light irradiation, which was attributed to synergism between plasmonic and catalytic functions of cores and shells, respectively. From quantitative analyses on the contribution of the plasmonic effects to the electrocatalytic activity, Yang et al found that the enhanced electrocatalytic activity is contributed mostly by the photothermal effect, of which contribution is larger than 80% . Considering the amplified plasmonic function and intact catalytic activity of the Au@M NPCs relative to their NP counterparts, it can be reasoned that the present Au@M NPCs can be a highly promising platform for plasmon‐enhanced electrocatalysis.…”

“…However, the Pd or Pt shell can damp out the dipolar plasmon oscillations of the Au core, because Pd and Pt have drastically lower conductivities at optical frequency compared to Au . As such, an increase in the thickness of the catalytically active Pd or Pt shell to secure its inherent catalytic function sometimes lessens the plasmonic performance of the Au core . In this sense, the development of a fabrication method to prepare well‐designed hybrid nanostructures between plasmonic and catalytic materials is still of paramount importance to fully exploit each function of constituent materials.…”

Harnessing Solar‐Driven Photothermal Effect toward the Water–Energy Nexus

“…[30] When the incident light frequency can match the inherent oscillation frequency of free electrons within metal surfaces, it will trigger the generation of photoexcited hot electrons, followed by the oscillation with incident electromagnetic field. [32] Benefiting from the achievements in the area of nanoscience and nanotechnology, there have been numerous kinds of metals used as plasmonic photothermal agents so far, such as gold (Au), [33][34][35] silver (Ag), [36] platinum, [37] palladium, [38] and aluminum. [31] On the basis of above interaction mechanism, Orrit and co-workers first reported a plasmonic photothermal effect of nanometer-sized gold particles in 2002.…”