Titania supported gold nanoparticles as photocatalyst

This Perspective is focused on the photocatalytic activity of gold nanoparticles supported on titania (Au/TiO(2)). Titania is the most widely used photocatalyst, but its limited activity under visible light irradiation has motivated the quest for modified titania materials absorbing visible light. The review starts by justifying how doping with metallic elements is a related strategy, but different, to that leading to the use of Au/TiO(2) in photocatalysis. Data supporting and confirming the photoactivity of gold nanoparticles in colloidal solutions are briefly presented to justify the possibility of gold photosensitization of titania by electron injection into the conduction band. After describing the most…