Photocatalytic Self-Doped SnO2-x Nanocrystals Drive Visible-Light-Responsive Color Switching

Dan Han; Baolai Jiang; Ji Feng; Yadong Yin; Wenshou Wang

doi:10.1002/anie.201702563

Photocatalytic Self-Doped SnO_2-x Nanocrystals Drive Visible-Light-Responsive Color Switching

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2017 Jun 26;56(27):7792-7796. doi: 10.1002/anie.201702563. Epub 2017 Jun 5.

Authors

Dan Han¹, Baolai Jiang¹, Ji Feng², Yadong Yin², Wenshou Wang¹

Affiliations

¹ National Engineering Research Center for Colloidal Materials, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shandong University, Ji'Nan, 250100, P.R. China.
² Department of Chemistry and UCR Center for Catalysis, University of California, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA.

PMID: 28508468
DOI: 10.1002/anie.201702563

Abstract

Visible-light-responsive reversible color-switching systems are attractive to many applications because visible light has superior penetration and causes far less damage to organic molecules than UV. Herein, we report that self-doping of SnO_2-x nanocrystals with Sn²⁺ red-shifts their absorption to the visible region and simultaneously produces oxygen vacancies, which can effectively scavenge photogenerated holes and thus enable the color switching of redox dyes using visible light. Wavelength-selective switching can also be achieved by coupling the photocatalytic activity of the SnO_2-x NCs with the color-switching kinetics of different redox dyes. The fast light response enables the further fabrication of a solid film that can be repeatedly written on using a visible laser pen or projection printing through a photomask. This discovery represents a big step forward towards practical applications, especially in areas in which safety issues and photodamage by UV light are of concern.

Keywords: color switching; nanocrystal doping; rewritable media; tin oxide; visible light.

Publication types

Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't