Abstract
Much attention has been focused on titanium dioxide due to its numerous scientific and industrial applications in photocatalysis, electrochemistry, active coatings, gas sensors, etc. In this talk the speaker will describe fundamental studies of model systems aimed at understanding factors associated with photocatalysis, resistive switching and catalysis. Photocatalysis has long been thought to be associated with photoexcitation across the 3 eV bandgap of TiO2. In recent work we have shown that there is another channel that opens at about 3 eV, which corresponds to photoexcitation from band gap states to OH related states in the conduction band region. Resistive switching involves the formation and removal of conducting tracks. The speaker will also discuss a way of simulating this in a simple way by manipulating oxygen vacancies. Heterogeneous catalysts usually consist of metal nanoparticles supported on a metal oxide. The nanoparticles can behave differently to a single crystal because of quantum size effects and encapsulation by an oxide layer. Finally, the speaker will describe studies which show that differences can arise from the morphology of the substrate.
About the speaker
Prof Geoff Thornton obtained his BSc in Chemistry from University of Sussex in 1973 and PhD from University of Oxford in 1976. He stayed in Oxford as a Research Fellow till 1978. In 1979, he joined Manchester University as a lecturer and moved to University College London as a Professor of Physical Chemistry in 2003.
Prof Thornton’s research focuses on the nanoscience and surface science of metal oxides, which play a crucial role in technologies such as catalysis and molecular electronics. The targets of his experiments include developing single molecule spectroscopy on oxide surfaces, imaging single molecule chemistry, and nanofabrication of functional devices.
Prof Thornton received numerous awards including Surfaces and Interfaces Award of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Humboldt Research Award and the Royal Society Wolfson Merit Award. He was also elected as a fellow of the American Physical Society, Royal Society of Chemistry and Institute of Physics.
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