Recent Progress and Challenges in Plasmon‐Mediated Reduction of CO2 to Chemicals and Fuels

Abstract The realization of the strong interaction of plasmonic nanostructures with electromagnetic radiation, subdiffraction‐limit field localization, and unusually high field enhancement enables immense opportunities to harness visible light in the field of photocatalysis. Plasmon‐induced energetic charge carriers allow the metal nanostructures to catalyze surface reactions with selective pathways that are rather a holy grail of thermal catalysis. An intriguing application of plasmonic photocatalysis includes sequestration of atmospheric CO 2 by its conversion into value‐added chemical fuels, thus mimicking the process of natural photosynthesis and addressing the problem of rising global warming and energy demands. In this regard, plasmonic photocatalysts circumvent the fallacy of conventional semiconductor photocatalysts to harvest visible light and modulate the CO 2 reduction reaction pathways to attain selectivity. This review discusses the primary concepts of plasmonic catalysis, emphasizing the recent developments to tackle the obstacles present in achieving efficient and selective CO 2 reduction by exploring various multicomponent plasmonic nanostructures that can extract maximum energy to perform a function. Some of the challenges that need more attention to optimize productivity are addressed and an outlook for future avenues in this field is provided.