Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 3, 2026

Evaluating Plasmonic Transport in Current-carrying Silver Nanowires
Published on: December 11, 2013
Quantifying Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Induced Enhancement on Metal@Cu2O Composites for Photoelectrochemical
1School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, P. R. China.
None:
The localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of metal nanoparticles can substantially enhance the activity of photoelectrocatalytic (PEC) reactions. However, quantifying the respective contributions of different LSPR mechanisms to the enhancement of PEC performance remains an urgent challenge. In this work, Cu@Cu2O composites prepared by annealing Cu2O under an inert atmosphere and electrodeposited metal@Cu2O composites (MED@Cu2O, MED = CuED, AuED, AgED, PdED, PtED) are employed as platform materials to investigate the LSPR effect on the PEC hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). All the composites exhibited remarkably LSPR-enhanced activity toward PEC HER. The contributions of two LSPR mechanisms, plasmon induced resonance energy transfer (PIRET) and hot electron transfer (HET), to the photocurrent on Cu@Cu2O and CuED@Cu2O are quantified by using different bands of incident light. Moreover, using MED@Cu2O composites, the effects of both the metal species and the applied potential on HET are quantitatively investigated. The results reveal that a pronounced HET enhancement occurs only when the LSPR peak energy is lower than the semiconductor bandgap energy (Eg) and that HET strengthens as the applied potential becomes more negative for PEC HER. This work therefore provides a quantitative understanding of the roles of PIRET and HET in boosting PEC activity.
Related Concept Videos
Formation of Complex Ions
Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes
To explain the observed behavior of transition metal complexes (such as colors), a model involving electrostatic interactions between the electrons from the ligands and the electrons in the unhybridized d orbitals of the central metal atom has been developed. This electrostatic model is crystal field theory (CFT). It helps to understand, interpret, and predict the colors, magnetic behavior, and some structures of coordination compounds of transition metals.
CFT focuses on...
Colors and Magnetism
When atoms or molecules absorb light at the proper frequency, their electrons are excited to higher-energy orbitals. For many main group atoms and molecules, the absorbed photons are in the ultraviolet range of the electromagnetic spectrum, which cannot be detected by the human eye. For coordination compounds, the energy difference between the d orbitals often allows photons in the visible range to be absorbed and emitted, which is seen as colors by the human eye.
Electrodeposition
Electrodeposition can...
Extraction: Advanced Methods

