Wang Hui, Cheng Yiyan, Zhu Jintao, Zhang Lianbin
Key Lab of Material Chemistry for Energy Conversion &, Storage of Ministry of Education (HUST), School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), Wuhan, 430074, China.
Chempluschem. 2024 Jul;89(7):e202400002. doi: 10.1002/cplu.202400002. Epub 2024 Apr 17.
Light is a promising renewable energy source and can be converted into heat, electricity, and chemical energy. However, the efficiency of light-energy conversion is largely hindered by limited light-absorption coefficients and the low quantum yield of current-generation materials. Photonic crystals (PCs) can adjust the propagation and distribution of photons because of their unique periodic structures, which offers a compelling platform for photon management. The periodicity of materials with an alternating refractive index can be used to manipulate the dispersion of photons to generate the photonic bandgap (PBG), in which light is reflected. The slow photon effect, i. e., photon propagation at a reduced group velocity near the edges of the PBG, is widely regarded as another valuable optical property for manipulating light. Furthermore, multiple light scattering can increase the optical path, which is a vital optical property for PCs. Recently, the light reflected by PBG, the slow photon effect, and multiple light scattering have been exploited to improve light utilization efficiency in photoelectrochemistry, materials chemistry, and biomedicine to enhance light-energy conversion efficiency. In this review, the fabrication of opal or inverse opal PCs and the theory for improving the light utilization efficiency of photocatalysis, solar cells, and photoluminescence regulation are discussed. We envision photon management of opal or inverse opal PCs may provide a promising avenue for light-assisted applications to improve light-energy-conversion efficiency.
光作为一种很有前景的可再生能源，能够被转化为热、电和化学能。然而，光能转换效率在很大程度上受到当前材料有限的光吸收系数和低量子产率的阻碍。光子晶体（PCs）因其独特的周期性结构能够调节光子的传播和分布，为光子管理提供了一个极具吸引力的平台。具有交替折射率的材料的周期性可用于操纵光子的色散以产生光子带隙（PBG），在该带隙中光会被反射。慢光子效应，即光子在PBG边缘附近以降低的群速度传播，被广泛认为是操纵光的另一种有价值的光学特性。此外，多次光散射可以增加光程，这是光子晶体的一个重要光学特性。最近，PBG反射的光、慢光子效应和多次光散射已被用于提高光电化学、材料化学和生物医学中的光利用效率，以提高光能转换效率。在这篇综述中，讨论了蛋白石或反蛋白石光子晶体的制备以及提高光催化、太阳能电池和光致发光调节的光利用效率的理论。我们设想蛋白石或反蛋白石光子晶体的光子管理可能为光辅助应用提供一条有前景的途径，以提高光能转换效率。
