Photoinduced Processes in Metal Oxide Nanomaterials

The demand of carbon neutral economy rises the importance of efficient and broad use of solar energy to cover the needs of modern society. Metal oxides (MOs) have an important role in this development and show great potentials in solving a wide range of problems from the solar energy harvesting to the catalytic activities such as conversion of the atmospheric carbon dioxide to useful products. This chapter covers fundamentals of the light interaction with MO nanostructures. It has two particular focuses: the photophysics of MO nanostructures and primary reactions activated by the light inside the MOs and at the MOs interfaces. The latter is practically important for designing devices based on MO nanomaterials that have high surface-area-to-volume ratio. The fundamental aspects are considered in a view of existing and perspective applications of the MO in devices powered by the solar light.