Prashant V. Kamat

Bio: Prashant V. Kamat is an academic researcher from University of Notre Dame. The author has contributed to research in topics: Racism & Excited state. The author has an hindex of 140, co-authored 725 publications receiving 79259 citations. Previous affiliations of Prashant V. Kamat include Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur & Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.

Photoinduced Charge Transfer between CdSe Quantum Dots and p-Phenylenediamine

Abstract: The excited state interaction between CdSe nanocrystals and a hole acceptor, p-phenylenediamine (PPD), is probed using emission and transient absorption spectroscopies. The changes in the photophysical properties of CdSe nanocrystals arising from the interaction with PPD are compared with an aliphatic amine, n-butylamine (n-BA). At low concentrations (<0.5 mM) n-butylamine enhances the emission of CdSe quantum dots whereas PPD effectively quenches the emission at similar concentrations. The low oxidation potential of PPD (E° = 0.26 V vs NHE) enables it to act as an effective scavenger for photogenerated holes. A surface bound complexation equilibrium model has been proposed to explain the quenching phenomenon. The transient absorption measurements confirm the formation of PPD cation radical and subsequent formation of coupling product. Formation of such charged species at the surface extends the bleaching recovery over several microseconds.

CuInS2-Sensitized Quantum Dot Solar Cell. Electrophoretic Deposition, Excited-State Dynamics, and Photovoltaic Performance

Abstract: Ternary metal chalcogenides such as CuInS2 offer new opportunities to design quantum dot solar cells (QDSC). Chemically synthesized CuInS2 quantum dots (particle diameter, 2.6 nm) have been successfully deposited within the mesoscopic TiO2 film using electrophoretic deposition (150 V cm–1 dc field). The primary photoinduced process of electron injection from excited CuInS2 into TiO2 occurs with a rate constant of 5.75 × 1011 s–1. The TiO2/CuInS2 films are photoactive and produce anodic photocurrent with a power conversion efficiency of 1.14%. Capping the TiO2/CuInS2 film with a CdS layer decreases the interfacial charge recombination and thus offers further improvement in the power conversion efficiency (3.91%). The synergy of using CdS as a passivation layer in the composite film is also evident from the increased external quantum efficiency of the electrode in the red region where only CuInS2 absorbs the incident light.

CdSe Quantum Dot Sensitized Solar Cells. Shuttling Electrons Through Stacked Carbon Nanocups

Abstract: The charge separation between excited CdSe semiconductor quantum dots and stacked-cup carbon nanotubes (SCCNTs) has been successfully tapped to generate photocurrent in a quantum dot sensitized solar cell (QDSC). By employing an electrophoretic deposition technique we have cast SCCNT−CdSe composite films on optically transparent electrodes (OTEs). The quenching of CdSe emission, as well as transient absorption measurements, confirms ultrafast electron transfer to SCCNTs. The rate constant for electron transfer increases from 9.51 × 109 s−1 to 7.04 × 1010 s−1 as we decrease the size of CdSe nanoparticles from 4.5 to 3 nm. The ability of SCCNTs to collect and transport electrons from excited CdSe has been established from photocurrent measurements. The morphological and excited state properties of SCCNT−CdSe composites demonstrate their usefulness in energy conversion devices.

Size-Dependent Excited State Behavior of Glutathione-Capped Gold Clusters and Their Light-Harvesting Capacity

Abstract: Glutathione-protected gold clusters exhibit size-dependent excited state and electron transfer properties. Larger-size clusters (e.g., Au25GSH18) with core-metal atoms display rapid (<1 ps) as well as slower relaxation (∼200 ns) while homoleptic clusters (e.g., Au10–12GSH10–12) exhibit only slower relaxation. These decay components have been identified as metal–metal transition and ligand-to-metal charge transfer, respectively. The short lifetime relaxation component becomes less dominant as the size of the gold cluster decreases. The long-lived excited state and ability to participate in electron transfer are integral for these clusters to serve as light-harvesting antennae. A strong correlation between the ligand-to-metal charge-transfer excited state lifetime and photocatalytic activity was evidenced from the electron transfer to methyl viologen. The photoactivity of these metal clusters shows increasing photocatalytic reduction yield (0.05–0.14) with decreasing cluster size, Au25 < Au18 < Au15 < Au10–...

I and i

Abstract: There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality. Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

Organometal Halide Perovskites as Visible-Light Sensitizers for Photovoltaic Cells

Abstract: Two organolead halide perovskite nanocrystals, CH3NH3PbBr3 and CH3NH3PbI3, were found to efficiently sensitize TiO2 for visible-light conversion in photoelectrochemical cells. When self-assembled on mesoporous TiO2 films, the nanocrystalline perovskites exhibit strong band-gap absorptions as semiconductors. The CH3NH3PbI3-based photocell with spectral sensitivity of up to 800 nm yielded a solar energy conversion efficiency of 3.8%. The CH3NH3PbBr3-based cell showed a high photovoltage of 0.96 V with an external quantum conversion efficiency of 65%.

Electronics and optoelectronics of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides.

Abstract: Single-layer metal dichalcogenides are two-dimensional semiconductors that present strong potential for electronic and sensing applications complementary to that of graphene.

Gold nanoparticles: assembly, supramolecular chemistry, quantum-size-related properties, and applications toward biology, catalysis, and nanotechnology.

Abstract: Although gold is the subject of one of the most ancient themes of investigation in science, its renaissance now leads to an exponentially increasing number of publications, especially in the context of emerging nanoscience and nanotechnology with nanoparticles and self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). We will limit the present review to gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), also called gold colloids. AuNPs are the most stable metal nanoparticles, and they present fascinating aspects such as their assembly of multiple types involving materials science, the behavior of the individual particles, size-related electronic, magnetic and optical properties (quantum size effect), and their applications to catalysis and biology. Their promises are in these fields as well as in the bottom-up approach of nanotechnology, and they will be key materials and building block in the 21st century. Whereas the extraction of gold started in the 5th millennium B.C. near Varna (Bulgaria) and reached 10 tons per year in Egypt around 1200-1300 B.C. when the marvelous statue of Touthankamon was constructed, it is probable that “soluble” gold appeared around the 5th or 4th century B.C. in Egypt and China. In antiquity, materials were used in an ecological sense for both aesthetic and curative purposes. Colloidal gold was used to make ruby glass 293 Chem. Rev. 2004, 104, 293−346

Visible-Light Photocatalysis in Nitrogen-Doped Titanium Oxides

Abstract: To use solar irradiation or interior lighting efficiently, we sought a photocatalyst with high reactivity under visible light. Films and powders of TiO 2- x N x have revealed an improvement over titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) under visible light (wavelength 2 has proven to be indispensable for band-gap narrowing and photocatalytic activity, as assessed by first-principles calculations and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy.