Plasmon-Enhanced Solar Water Splitting on Metal-Semiconductor Photocatalysts

Photocatalytic water splitting using solar energy has been widely studied as a promising method for clean energy production. Continued efforts have been made to enhance the performance of solar-to-fuel energy conversion. The introduction of localized surface plasmon resonance (SPR) has been proposed as a promising strategy to enhance the efficiency of photocatalytic water splitting. This review presents an overview of the recent progress in the development of plasmonic photocatalysts for solar water splitting. Plasmon-enhanced mechanisms, including hot electron injection, near-field effects, and light scattering/trapping, are discussed. Furthermore, recent relevant works to discuss the emerging strategies for efficiency improvement and better understanding of the mechanisms are summarized. Finally, the perspectives of plasmonic photocatalysts for water splitting and the possible research directions are presented and discussed.