Analysis of optical properties of spherical metallic nanoparticles for effective absorption of solar radiation and their heating

The investigations and the use of nanoparticles as photothermal agents in solar and photonic nanotechnology represent a fast growing area of research and applications. Potential benefits include the possibility for the applications of nanoparticles for absorption of solar radiation, a light-to-heat conversion, for applications in nanoenergy, solar cells, photocatalysis, etc. The efficiency of applications of metallic nanoparticles for solar and photo-thermal nanotechnology depends on thermo-optical properties of nanoparticles, characteristics of radiation and surrounding medium, etc. Here we present the results of comparative analysis of the optical properties of metallic nanoparticles allowing to select their parameters for effective nanosolar and nanophotonic applications. Optical properties of several metallic (aurum, platinum, zinc, nickel, titanium, silver, molybdenum, and palladium) nanoparticles are theoretically investigated in the spectral interval 200–2500 nm and the analysis of them has been carried out. The investigation of the influence of nanoparticle parameters (type of metal, their radii, optical indexes, etc.), on optical properties of nanoparticles has been conducted. It was established, that spherical titanium, nickel, molybdenum, and palladium nanoparticles with the radii of about 75 nm can be applied for effective absorption of solar radiation and heating of nanoparticles.