Methods, Mechanism, and Applications of Photodeposition in Photocatalysis

Illumination of a slurry of (micrometer sized) semiconductor particles in an aqueous phase solution of a metal salt, often results in deposition of well-defined metal(oxide) nanoparticles on the surface of the semiconductor particles: this phenomenon is generally known as photodeposition. In this lecture I will discuss the effect of process conditions, focusing on the role of a so-called sacrificial donor, on the oxidation state and morphology of Pt nanoparticles which are obtained when using photodeposition. Also the effect of doping of semiconductors on the obtained oxidation state of Pt will be addressed. Finally, I will extensively discuss the origin of the phenomenon of facet-preferred deposition of nanoparticles upon (photo)deposition, using data of SEM to determine particle distributions, and in situ AFM to determine surface charges.