Plasmon-Mediated Oxidation Reaction on Au/p-Cu2O: The Origin of Hot Holes

More sustainable solutions are needed to produce chemicals and fuels, mainly to face rising demands and mitigate climate change. Light, as a reagent, has emerged as a route to activate small molecules, e.g., H2O, CO2, N2, and make complex chemicals in a process called photocatalysis. Several photosystems have been proposed, with plasmonic technology emerging as one the most promising technologies due to its high optical absorption and hot-carrier formation. However, the lifetime of hot carriers is unsuitable for direct use; therefore, they are normally coupled with suitable charge-accepting materials, such as semiconductors. Herein, a system is reported consisting of Au supported in p-Cu2O. The combination of p-Cu2O intrinsic photoactivity with the plasmonic properties of Au extended the system’s optical absorption range, increasing photocatalytic efficiency. More importantly, the system enabled us to study the underlying processes responsible for hot-hole transfer to p-Cu2O. Based on photocatalytic studies, it was concluded that most of the holes involved in aniline photo-oxidation come from hot-carrier injections, not from the PIRET process.