Mechanisms of noble metal-enhanced ferroelectric spontaneous polarized photocatalysis

Photocatalysis technology with merits of mild reaction conditions and minimal secondary pollution had shown extensive applications potential in the domains of energy and environment. Nevertheless, the rapid recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs critically hinders the efficiency of photocatalysis. Very recently, the ferroelectric catalysts with merits of spontaneous polarization hold great promise in the realm of applications for converting energy including modulated photocatalysis to break through traditional energy efficiency bottlenecks. However, ferroelectric materials still suffer from limitations such as low Curie temperatures, narrow light absorption wavelength ranges, and challenges in polarization, significantly impeding their photocatalytic practicality. To further promote the performance of ferroelectric catalysts, the strategy of incorporating noble metals such as gold, silver, and platinum into ferroelectric materials was proposed and highlighted. This review aims to outline the mechanisms of noble metal-enhanced ferroelectric materials towards various specific high-end applications. Noble metals successfully address core challenges of the durable polarization of ferroelectric by inducing subtle lattice distortions and electronic structure modulations. These alterations increase internal energy, allowing the material to maintain ferroelectric characteristics at higher temperatures and promoting the formation of strong polarization states, crucial for high-performance ferroelectrics. Additionally, noble metals exhibit a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect, leading to intense absorption in the visible or near-infrared region for boosted photocatalysis. By clarifying the fundamental concept and characterization methods of noble metal reinforced ferroelectricity, this review proposed the challenges and future trends of metal-enhanced ferroelectric photocatalysis with its untapped potential in. The advancement of this field holds the promise of providing new possibilities in breakthrough the limits of efficiency and surface polarization state of photocatalysis for sustainable energy and environmental conservation.