Special Issue Preface pubs.acs.org/JPCC
Toward Nanostructure-Enhanced Photoenergy Conversion in the Plasmonic Chemical Reaction Field
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Nanostructure-Enhanced Photoenergy Conversion,” which was held in Daiba, Tokyo, Japan, from June 3−6, 2011. This conference focused on the chemical and physical consequences of light-field enhancement by nanostructures prepared by topdown and/or bottom-up methods using various materials, such as metals, semiconductors, polymers, transparent glasses, etc. The enhancement of an electric field of incident light by surface plasmon-polaritons and localized plasmons on/in nanostructured metal films and nanoparticles was one of the main topics of this symposium. Additionally, three-dimensionally (3D) structured and textured surfaces as well as microporous materials that act as hosts for active nanostructures are considered to be attractive for device applications based on photocatalytic, photovoltaic, and photoenhanced biosensing effects via the harvesting of light energy. Research results regarding the various light enhancement effects via light dispersion and propagation, nanoantenna, lightning-rod, shape-polarization coupling, nonlinear frequency up-conversion and harmonics generation, enhanced scattering, and enhanced emission were solicited. We also discussed the consequences of the interaction of molecules with incident strongly spatially localized light fields for applications in optical microscopic imaging (in vitro/in vivo), liquid- and gas-phase sensors based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), and enhanced fluorescence emission. Applications in the chemical reaction field for novel pathways of chemical synthesis and photonanostructuring were also discussed. Topics of the symposium included (1) the theory of molecules/materials under light illumination, (2) plasmonics, (3) nanofabrication of 1D, 2D, and 3D structures, (4) enhanced Raman, fluorescence, infrared, and terahertz spectroscopy, (5) ultrafast time-resolved spectroscopy and phenomena, (6) nonlinear phenomena in nanostructured materials, (7) ultrahigh-resolution optical microscopic imaging, (8) the application of plasmonic nanostructures to energy conversion, materials science and technology, catalysis and electrocatalysis, biology and medicine, and ultrasensitive detection, and (8) the harvesting of solar energy. The four-day symposium was organized by the guest editors of this special section and was well attended by more than 110 delegates from 11 countries. The program of the symposium included three distinguished plenary talks given by Professors Mostafa A. El-Sayed (Georgia Institute of Technology), George C. Schatz (Northwestern University), and Richard P. Van Duyne (Northwestern University), along with 10 invited and 18 oral talks and more than 100 poster presentations. The details of the symposium can be found online at http://www.photomolecule.net/yamadaconf2012/ index.html.
hotochemical studies have thus far made a strong impact on the development of science and technology. Research on topics that include photocatalysts, solar cells, optical memory, and photoresists focuses on the use of light as an energy source and contributes to the prosperity of society in numerous ways. Such research will undoubtedly contribute to a broad range of optical sciences in the 21st century as well. However, the ability to increase photon−molecule interactions through conventional photochemical molecular engineering is reaching its limits. Previous studies have mostly focused on the optical response of materials, whereas the spatial structure of the interaction region has largely been ignored. Spatial structure can become important for controlling the photons that initiate photochemical reactions within molecular systems. Recent advances in the studies of optical properties of metallic nanoparticle structures have indicated the possibility of controlling the properties of the optical waves, which can be important for novel applications in photochemistry. For example, light localization in metallic nanoparticle structures due to surface plasmons enables local field enhancement by up to 106 times compared to the incident homogeneous field. Consequently, nonlinear optical phenomena, such as twophoton absorption, which was previously widely believed to require excitation by ultrashort laser pulses, can be induced using weak incoherent continuous-wave light sources. Theoretical studies have indicated that spatial confinement and symmetry of the localized field region may circumvent restrictions on normally dipole-forbidden transitions, thus allowing discovery of novel photochemical processes. The local field can also be used to order the photoexcited molecules in microscale domains, which has led to further enhancements of the optical coupling. Thus, the creation of new metallic nano/microstructures capable of promoting optical interactions may promote the scientific and technological development of structures that enable optical processes to be controlled based on the previously described processes. We are confident that these studies will enable a breakthrough in photochemistry. To stimulate research in this field, we have organized several international conferences; the first occurred in 2009. Professor Johan Hofkens (K.U. Leuven, Belgium) and we organized “The International Symposium on Advances in NanostructureEnhanced Photochemical Reactions and Photoenergy Conversion” at Leuven, Belgium, which was held July 16−17, 2009. The Symposium on Nanostructure-Enhanced Photochemical Reactions was also organized as the part of Pacifichem2010 in Waikiki, Hawaii, USA, which was held December 15−16 and was successfully organized by Professors Mostafa El-Sayed (Georgia Institute of Technology), Ken Ghiggino (The University of Melbourne, Australia), Prashant Kamat (University of Notre Dame), and us. These conferences were also good venues in which to meet colleagues and professionals who work in the field of plasmonic chemistry. Under this context, the reports in this special section are based on a symposium entitled “Yamada Conference LXVI: © 2013 American Chemical Society
Hiroaki Misawa, Guest Editor Hokkaido University Special Issue: Nanostructured-Enhanced Photoenergy Conversion Published: February 14, 2013 2433
dx.doi.org/10.1021/jp400201p | J. Phys. Chem. C 2013, 117, 2433−2434
The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Special Issue Preface
Hideki Masuda, Guest Editor Tokyo Metropolitan University
Sunao Yamada, Guest Editor Kyushu University
Kei Murakoshi, Guest Editor
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Hokkaido University
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The guest editors acknowledge the effort of all of the contributing authors toward the publication of this special section. The symposium was supported by the Yamada Science Foundation as the 66th Yamada Conference. The co-organizers of the symposium are grateful for the continuous support by the Vice Conference Chair, the late Professor Ken-ichi Honda. The sponsorship awarded as the four-year research project, ″Strong Photon−Molecule Coupling Fields for Chemical Reactions″ supported by a Grand-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) on Priority Areas, MEXT, Japan, is also acknowledged. Finally, we thank Professor George C. Schatz, Editor-in-Chief, and Professor Prashant V. Kamat for their support in the publication of this special section.
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dx.doi.org/10.1021/jp400201p | J. Phys. Chem. C 2013, 117, 2433−2434
