Metal–Polymer Heterojunction in Colloidal-Phase Plasmonic Catalysis
View/ Open
Date
2022-03-03Author
Rogolino, Andrea
Claes, Nathalie
Cizaurre, Judit
Marauri, Aimar
Jumbo Nogales, Alba
Lawera, Zuzanna
Kruse, Joscha
Sanromán Iglesias, María
Zarketa Moyua, Ibai
Calvo, Unai
Jiménez Izal, Elisa
Bals, Sara
Grzelczak, Marek
Metadata
Show full item record
The journal of physical chemistry letters 13 : 2264–2272 (2022)
Abstract
[EN] Plasmonic catalysis in the colloidal phase requires robust surface ligands that prevent particles from aggregation in adverse chemical environments and allow carrier flow from reagents to nanoparticles. This work describes the use of a water-soluble conjugated polymer comprising a thiophene moiety as a surface ligand for gold nanoparticles to create a hybrid system that, under the action of visible light, drives the conversion of the biorelevant NAD+ to its highly energetic reduced form NADH. A combination of advanced microscopy techniques and numerical simulations revealed that the robust metal-polymer heterojunction, rich in sulfonate functional groups, directs the interaction of electron-donor molecules with the plasmonic photocatalyst. The tight binding of polymer to the gold surface precludes the need for conventional transition-metal surface cocatalysts, which were previously shown to be essential for photocatalytic NAD+ reduction but are known to hinder the optical properties of plasmonic nanocrystals. Moreover, computational studies indicated that the coating polymer fosters a closer interaction between the sacrificial electron-donor triethanolamine and the nanoparticles, thus enhancing the reactivity.