Theoretical insights into photoinduced charge transfer and catalysis at oxide interfaces

The byproducts and chemicals used in the extraction and refinement of fossil fuels can cause significant harm to the environment. The consumption of organic fuel is not sustainable and results in severe damage to the environment, causing pollution and other effects that lead to global warming. The energy produced by the sun and carried down to earth by its radiation provides an alternative and clean source of energy to meet and exceed the world's energy consumption demands. The electrolyte serves to close the electrical chain by transferring electrons from the opposite electrode to the chromophore. This process restores the chromophore to its neutral charge, making a new photoexcitation cycle possible. Finally, when the electrons and holes arrive at the surface reaction sites, they promote reduction and oxidation, respectively. The reaction sites are usually separated spatially, either by the use of cocatalysts, which direct the electron and hole movement in the nanoparticle, or by relaying the photoanode with the counter electrode, as in photovoltaic systems.