Premium
Artificial ceramic diatoms with multiscale photonic architectures via nanoimprint lithography for CO 2 photoreduction
Author(s) -
Xie Peiwen,
Chen Zhihan,
Xu Jun,
Xie Dajie,
Wang Xin,
Cui Shifan,
Zhou Han,
Zhang Di,
Fan Tongxiang
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/jace.16334
Subject(s) - nanoimprint lithography , materials science , lithography , structural coloration , artificial photosynthesis , nanotechnology , ceramic , photonics , biomimetics , photonic crystal , nano , optoelectronics , catalysis , chemistry , fabrication , photocatalysis , composite material , organic chemistry , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology
The elaborated photonic architectures and unique light manipulation ability of diatoms provide inspirations for the design of efficient artificial photosynthetic systems. However, the biomimetic synthesis of artificial diatoms with accurate control over nanoscale geometry for scalable production has been a great challenge. Herein, diatom Coscinodiscus sp. is served as a model for the biomimetic production of artificial ceramic diatoms with multiscale photonic architectures for CO 2 photoreduction. Optical finite‐difference time‐domain simulations are conducted to investigate the optical mechanisms on enhanced light harvesting and to establish a modified structural model. Electron Beam Lithography and Nanoimprint Lithography are applied to fabricate artificial TiO 2 diatoms with elaborated periodic photonic structures and high surface areas (169.4 m 2 g −1 ). Artificial photosynthesis via CO 2 reduction enhances CO and CH 4 evolution on the artificial diatoms by up to 2.75‐ and 2.3‐fold, respectively, compared with the corresponding powder sample. Furthermore, gas diffusion behaviors, closely related to the gas‐phase reaction, are investigated by theoretical simulation to reveal the hierarchical structural effects on catalytic efficiency. This work provides a new pathway to design and biomimetic synthesis of artificial structures for enhanced performances.