Spin and ferroelectric-driven photocatalysts for efficient CO2 reduction: material design and future perspectives

Abstract

Rising CO₂ emissions drive global warming and climate change, demanding urgent and effective mitigation strategies. Photocatalytic CO₂ reduction offers a promising solar-powered strategy for converting waste CO₂ into value-added fuels and chemicals. However, traditional photocatalysts are hindered by limited light absorption, rapid charge recombination, and sluggish surface kinetics. Spin- and ferroelectric-driven photocatalysts address these challenges by manipulating electron polarization to improve light harvesting, charge separation, and surface reactions. Their synergistic coupling within a single material system further suppresses recombination and directs charge flow toward selective CO₂ conversion. This review summarizes recent progress in advanced materials, including perovskites, bismuth and cobalt oxides, 2D materials, and heterojunctions utilized for spin- and ferroelectric-driven photocatalysts, along with key design approaches such as doping, defect engineering, chiral integration, coordination modulation, single-atom incorporation, and intergrowth structures. The role of external fields in manipulating electron polarizations is also discussed. Finally, we present conclusions and outline future directions for the design of advanced spin-driven and dual spin/ferroelectric-driven photocatalysts for efficient photocatalytic CO₂ reduction.