The urgent need to combat climate change has spurred global research into technologies that can capture and convert carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into useful fuels and chemicals, mimicking natural photosynthesis. Photocatalysis, which uses sunlight to drive chemical reactions, is a leading candidate. However, finding efficient, stable, and scalable photocatalyst materials remains a significant challenge.
A research team from the University of Science and Technology of China and collaborating institutions has now developed a breakthrough method to supercharge a promising photocatalytic material. They used an advanced technique called pulsed laser ablation in liquids (PLAL) to precisely engineer sulfur vacancies in zinc indium sulfide (ZnIn 2 S 4 ) nanosheets. The defect-rich nanosheets demonstrated a dramatic 15-fold enhancement in converting CO 2 to carbon monoxide (CO) compared to the bulk ZnIn 2 S 4 . The study was published in the journal Nano Research on May 5.
Conventional methods for creating defects in semiconductors often involve harsh chemicals, high temperatures that can introduce impurities, which limit their control and stability. Our laser ablation approach is rapid, conducted in water at room temperature, and provides exceptional control over the type and concentration of defects. It’s a cleaner and more precise engineering tool.
The team directed high-energy laser pulses at a suspension of ZnIn 2 S 4 nanosheets. The intense, localized energy of the laser pulses knocks sulfur atoms out of the crystal lattice, creating vacancies without damaging the overall structure. By simply tuning the laser irradiation time, the researchers could finely control the density of these sulfur defects.
The introduced sulfur vacancies revolutionized the material's properties. Spectroscopic and microscopic analyses confirmed the vacancies create mid-gap energy states that broaden the material's light absorption into the visible spectrum. More importantly, these vacancies act as powerful electron traps, drastically reducing the recombination of photogenerated electron-hole pairs—a major bottleneck in photocatalysis.
“The sulfur vacancies serve a triple function,” explained Professor Chao Zhang, a co-corresponding author. “They enhance light harvesting, they greatly improve the separation and lifetime of the charge carriers needed for the reaction, and they create highly active sites that strongly adsorb and activate the inert CO 2 molecules.”
The optimized photocatalyst, ablated for 1.5 hours (ZIS-D 1.5h ), achieved a CO production rate of 365 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ with high selectivity (89%). It also maintained excellent performance over multiple reaction cycles, demonstrating the stability of the laser-created defects. Isotope labeling experiments using 13 CO 2 definitively proved the produced CO originated from the fed CO 2 .
Theoretical calculations revealed the atomic-level mechanism: the sulfur vacancies significantly lower the energy barrier for the key rate-limiting step, the formation of the *COOH intermediate from adsorbed CO 2 . This makes the conversion pathway far more efficient.
“This work establishes pulsed laser ablation as a versatile, green, and scalable strategy for precision engineering of next-generation photocatalysts,” said Professor Yujie Xiong. “The principle can be extended to other materials. Our ultimate goal is to develop highly efficient artificial photosynthesis systems that can sustainably produce solar fuels from CO 2 and water.”
The research team includes Saira Man, Jian Lei, Shuaikang Sang, Enquan Zhu, You Li, Khadija Tul Kubra, Zakaria Ismail, Zhongliao Wang, Chao Zhang, Jingxiang Low, and Yujie Xiong from the University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui Normal University, Huaibei Normal University, and Tiangong University.
This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2020YFA0710302, 2022YFE0126500), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52261135635, 22150610467, 22232003) and the Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2408085MB024).
DOI Link:
https://doi.org/10.26599/NR.2026.94908531
About Nano Research
Nano Research is a peer-reviewed, open access, international and interdisciplinary research journal, sponsored by Tsinghua University and the Chinese Chemical Society, published by Tsinghua University Press on the platform SciOpen. It publishes original high-quality research and significant review articles on all aspects of nanoscience and nanotechnology, ranging from basic aspects of the science of nanoscale materials to practical applications of such materials. After 18 years of development, it has become one of the most influential academic journals in the nano field. Nano Research has published more than 1,000 papers every year from 2022, with its cumulative count surpassing 8,000 articles. In 2025 InCites Journal Citation Reports, its 2025 IF is 9.4 (8.3, 5 years), and it continues to be the Q1 area among the four subject classifications. Nano Research Award, established by Nano Research together with TUP and Springer Nature in 2013, and Nano Research Young Innovators (NR45) Awards, established by Nano Research in 2018, have become international academic awards with global influence.
Nano Research
Engineering of sulfur defects in ZnIn₂S₄ via pulsed laser ablation for enhanced photocatalytic CO₂ reduction performance
6-May-2026