OHPERA had a strong scientific presence at the MATSUS Fall 2025 Conference, where consortium partners contributed to two high-level scientific symposia bringing together leading researchers in photoelectrochemical (PEC) technologies and next-generation halide perovskites.
OHPERA’s coordinator, Prof. Sixto Giménez (Universitat Jaume I, Institute of Advanced Materials (INAM)), co-organised the PECVAL symposium (E7 – Photoelectrochemical approaches for added-value chemicals and waste valorisation), a session dedicated to the latest advances in clean chemical production and sustainable fuel synthesis through solar-driven reactions.
The symposium created a multidisciplinary forum connecting researchers working on:
- Direct solar water splitting (HER, OER)
- CO₂ reduction and solar-driven valorisation of biomass, organics, nitrogen compounds, and plastics
- Novel semiconductor and co-catalyst materials for PEC and photocatalysis
- Advanced PEC architectures (heterojunctions, Z-schemes, tandem and decoupled systems)
- In-operando characterisation of PEC systems
- Multi-physics modelling, upscaling, waste recovery, and circular approaches
With strong participation from OHPERA, the PECVAL programme included keynote and invited lectures from internationally recognised experts such as Marco Favaro (Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin) and Menny Shalom (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev).
The symposium strengthened the connection between fundamental PEC research and industrial implementation, aligning strongly with OHPERA’s mission to advance circular PEC materials, scalable photoelectrode architectures, and solar hydrogen pathways.
OHPERA was also represented through partner Prof. Iván Mora-Seró (Universitat Jaume I, Institute of Advanced Materials (INAM)), co-organiser of the PEROFUN session (A4 Fundamental understanding of halide perovskite materials and devices), alongside academic leaders from the University of Oxford and IFW Dresden.
This symposium focused on the fast-evolving field of halide perovskites and perovskite-inspired materials, an area directly connected to OHPERA’s work on perovskite nanocrystals for PEC devices.
Topics included:
- Development of high-performance perovskite solar cells and multi-junction PV
- Fundamental understanding of defect chemistry, ion migration, and carrier dynamics
- Interface effects impacting device efficiency and stability
- In-situ and in-operando characterisation techniques
- Lower-dimensional perovskites, single crystals, and perovskite-inspired materials
- Emerging applications such as LEDs, field-effect transistors, neuromorphic devices, spintronics, and lasing
- Theoretical modelling and device simulation
The event provided a rich environment for scientific exchange, offered extensive opportunities for young researchers, and showcased cutting-edge developments in materials crucial to PEC device innovation.
By contributing to two major symposia—one dedicated to solar-driven chemical production and the other to advanced perovskite materials and interfaces—OHPERA reinforced its scientific outreach, strengthened collaboration with leading research groups, and highlighted its role in shaping Europe’s next-generation PEC technologies.
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