One-dimensional nanostructured materials for solar energy harvesting

As the energy demand is rapidly increasing worldwide compared with the supply, there is an urgent need to develop alternative energy-harvesting technologies to sustain the economic growth. Among them, solar energy is one of the most promising sources as it is clean, abundant and renewable. Due to the unique optical and electrical properties, one-dimensional (1D) nanostructured semiconductors are attractive materials for the construction of active energy-harvesting devices. In this review article, applications of 1D nanostructured materials – including photovoltaics, photoelectrochemical cells and solar hydrogen production – in solar energy harvesting are summarized. With the efficiency enhancement and cost reduction, 1D nanostructured solar energy harvesting devices are found to be promising to tackle the future energy issue.