A Quasi-Bound States in the Continuum Dielectric Metasurface-Based Antenna-Reactor Photocatalyst.

Yuan, Lin; Zhao, Yage; Toma, Andrea; Aglieri, Vincenzo; Gerislioglu, Burak; Yuan, Yigao; Lou, Minghe; Ogundare, Adebola et al. · Nano Lett · 2024

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Metasurfaces are a class of two-dimensional artificial resonators, creating new opportunities for strong light-matter interactions. One type of nonradiative optical metasurface that enables substantial light concentration is based on quasi-Bound States in the Continuum (quasi-BIC). Here we report the design and fabrication of a quasi-BIC dielectric metasurface that serves as an optical frequency antenna for photocatalysis. By depositing Ni nanoparticle reactors onto the metasurface, we create an antenna-reactor photocatalyst, where the virtually lossless metasurface funnels light to drive a chemical reaction. This quasi-BIC-Ni antenna-reactor drives H<sub>2</sub> dissociation under resonant illumination, showing strong polarization, wavelength, and optical power dependencies. Both E-field-induced electronic and photothermal heating effects drive the reaction, supported by load-dependent reactivity studies and our theoretical model. This study unlocks new opportunities for photocatalysis that employ dielectric metasurfaces for light harvesting in an antenna-reactor format.