Center of Artificial Photosynthesis for Solar Fuels

(CAP for Solar Fuels @Westlake)

Director：Licheng Sun

The Center of Artificial Photosynthesis for Solar Fuels at Westlake University (CAP for Solar Fuels @Westlake) is a newly established research center dedicated to overcoming the challenges associated with solar energy utilization and storage. The director of the center is Prof. Licheng SUN, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, expert in the field of artificial photosynthesis,, and a chair professor of chemistry in the School of Science at Westlake University.

The researches in CAP for Solar Fuels @ Westlake mainly focus on the design of the state-of-the-art catalysts and devices to achieve efficient water splitting for hydrogen production, solar-driven CO₂ and N₂ reductions to produce fuels, ammonia and value-added chemicals, water as oxygen and hydrogen sources for solar-driven oxidation and reduction of organic substrates to prepare fine chemicals, the coupling of new generation solar cells and key catalysts/electrodes, the development of novel light-harvesting semiconductor materials and photoanodes/photocathodes, unraveling water oxidation mechanism on natural photosynthesis oxygen-releasing enzyme and artificial intelligence aided material design. The mission of CAP for Solar Fuels @ Westlake is to provide multiple-scale understandings of chemical processes at complex solid-gas, gas-liquid and solid-liquid interfaces, and eventually design the state-of-the-art materials to achieve high-efficient solar energy conversion for renewable fuels and value-added chemicals.

Institute for Theoretical Sciences

The Institute for Theoretical Sciences was inaugurated at Westlake University on September 24^th, 2020. Professor Gang Tian was appointed to be the founding director. The institute aims to marshal talent around the globe and pioneer in theoretical research in a range of fundamental disciplines, including mathematics, theoretical physics, etc. The institute also carries out scientific research plan, project research, discipline construction and other related work independently.

International Center for Polaritonics     

https://icp.westlake.edu.cn/index.htm

The International Center for Polaritonics is designedto  produce low-dimensional multilayer semiconductor structures for the research and applications in Polaritonics: the physics of strongly coupled light-matter systems. The crystal growth facilities will include the molecular beam epitaxy and chemical vapor deposition reactors as well as the laser ablation technology. The original semiconductor structures will be characterized by means of the ultrafast optical spectroscopy with high spatial resolution. The optical experiments will be performed at the liquid Helium temperature and in the presence of magnetic fields up to 7T. The anticipated results will include polariton lasing and superfluidity, polariton simulators, polariton based sources of non-classical light, polariton-induced superconductivity. The theoretical group will contribute to the design of new structures, modelling of their quantum optical properties, development of new device concepts. The theory-experiment cooperation will be conducted on an everyday basis with regular feedbacks from modelling to the experiment and vice-versa. 

The Center will serve as a platform for a wide-scale international cooperation. Every year it will host tens of scientists coming from the world-leading universities of the USA, EU, Russia and Asia. The Center will host international research meetings, conferences and schools.