The plasmon-energy nexus: from energy efficient lighting to light harvesting and more

Abstract The combustion of fossil fuels to meet our increasing energy demand is unsustainable, not only because of fast depleting resources but also because of the detrimental environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions. In the spirit of transitioning toward more renewable sources, especially using sunlight as the main non-polluting, non-toxic and inexhaustible energy source, plasmonic nanostructures have come to play a major role. The strongly enhanced light-matter interactions enabled by the large extinction cross sections of plasmonic nanoparticles leads to a redistribution of photon, electron and thermal energies over space and time. This has important consequences for energy conversion technologies like, photovoltaics, photocatalysis, water splitting, CO 2 reduction, photothermal heating and energy efficient lighting. This Review describes the basic concepts of surface plasmon oscillations and the major mechanisms that foster the plasmon-energy nexus. These include, light trapping, electromagnetic field enhancement, plasmon induced resonance energy transfer, hot charge carrier generation and local heating effect. The applications of plasmon-induced phenomena to address energy challenges in diverse areas are discussed with representative examples showcasing the latest advancements. The Review also provides an overview of the current limitations in the field and a roadmap to facilitate future studies.