Plasmonic catalysis with bi-resonant noble metal—CuFeS₂ chalcopyrite hybrid structures

Both noble metal nanoparticles (NPs) and chalcopyrite (CuFeS₂) nanocrystals (NCs) provide resonant absorption in the visible, albeit through different mechanisms. Coherent oscillations of free conduction band electrons give rise to localized plasmons in noble metal NPs, whereas collective oscillations of bound electrons are responsible for quasistatic resonances in CuFeS₂NCs. This manuscript reviews the photophysical and photocatalytic properties of both noble metal and chalcopyrite nanostructures as well as direct and indirect charge and energy transfer processes in hybrid structures containing noble metal NPs and either semiconductor NCs or molecular photosensitizers or photocatalysts. CuFeS₂NCs share structural similarities with conventional semiconductor NCs, but the availability of collective charge oscillations in the visible facilitates a resonant coupling to localized plasmons in NPs. Hybrid nanostructures containing both metal and chalcopyrite building blocks are examined as a platform for wavelength-dependent charge and energy transfer and bifunctional reactivity for enhanced plasmonic photocatalysis.