Tanmay Banerjee

Photon upconversion and photocurrent generation via self-assembly at organic-inorganic interfaces.

Molecular photon upconversion via triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA-UC), combining two or more low energy photons to generate a higher energy excited state, is an intriguing strategy to surpass the maximum efficiency for a single junction solar cell (<34%). Here, we introduce self-assembled bilayers on metal oxide surfaces as a strategy to facilitate TTA-UC emission and demonstrate direct charge separation of the upconverted state. A 3-fold enhancement in transient photocurrent is achieved at light intensities as low as two equivalent suns. This strategy is simple, modular and offers unprecedented geometric and spatial control of the donor-acceptor interactions at an interface. These results are a key stepping stone toward the realization of an efficient TTA-UC solar cell that can circumvent the Shockley-Queisser limit.

Sequential Energy and Electron Transfer in Polynuclear Complex Sensitized TiO2 Nanoparticles.

Polynuclear-polypyridyl complexes exhibit a directional energy-transfer property that can improve their photosensitization activity. In the present work, the energy-transfer process is explored in a trinuclear Ru2(∧)Os1 complex using transient absorption spectroscopy. This study reveals an efficient excitation energy transfer from the terminal (Ru(II) complex) to the core (Os(II) complex) region in the ultrafast time domain (400 fs-40 ps). The excitation energy funnel is useful in improving the functionalized core activity. This is evidenced in an interfacial electron-transfer study of Ru2(∧)Os1, Ru2(∧)Ru1, and Os1 complex sensitized TiO2 nanoparticle (TiO2 NP) systems. The intramolecular energy transfer causes sequential excitation of the core part of the Ru2(∧)Os1 complex, which leads to multiexponential electron injection into TiO2 NP. Besides this, the electronic coupling between the metal ion centers stabilizes the positive charge within the trinuclear complex, which results in a slow charge recombination reaction. This study shows that polynuclear complexes can be very useful for their panchromatic effects, unidirectional energy- and electron-transfer properties.

Synthesis, steady-state, and femtosecond transient absorption studies of resorcinol bound ruthenium(II)- and osmium(II)-polypyridyl complexes on nano-TiO2 surface in water.

The synthesis of two new ruthenium(II)- and osmium(II)-polypyridyl complexes 3 and 4, respectively, with resorcinol as the enediol anchoring moiety, is described. Steady-state photochemical and electrochemical studies of the two sensitizer dyes confirm strong binding of the dyes to TiO2 in water. Femtosecond transient absorption studies have been carried out on the dye-TiO2 systems in water to reveal <120 fs and 1.5 ps electron injection times along with 30% slower back electron transfer time for the ruthenium complex 3. However, the corresponding osmium complex 4 shows strikingly different behavior for which only a <120 fs ultrafast injection is observed. Most remarkably, the back electron transfer is faster as compared to the corresponding catechol analogue of the dye. The origin and the consequences of such profound effects on the ultrafast interfacial dynamics are discussed. This Article on the electron transfer dynamics of the aforesaid systems reinforces the possibility of resorcinol being explored and developed as an extremely efficient binding moiety for use in dye-sensitized solar cells.