QUANTUM SIZE EFFECTS IN SEMICONDUCTOR PHOTOCATALYSIS

The characteristics of photocatalytic systems based on nanostructural semiconductors, characterized by quantum size effects, are discussed. An analysis is made of the consequences of exciton quantum confinement in the volume that are significant for photocatalysis and, in particular, the increase in the energy of photogenerated charges with decrease in the particle size, the photoinduced polarization processes, and also the simultaneous display of these effects. Possible ways of further increasing the effectiveness of systems based on nanostructural semiconductors are examined.