Calix[4]arene-based molecular photosensitizers for sustainable hydrogen production and other solar applications

This review collects the most representative literature reports on the use of calix[4]arene-based molecules as components, namely photosensitizer dyes, in solar devices, including photovoltaics (dye-sensitized solar cells, DSSC), hydrogen photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical generation from water and sunlight, and CO2 photoreduction. Calix[4]arenes are versatile and easily obtainable scaffolds to be integrated with solar device molecular components either as electron-donor groups in π-conjugated dyes or as host-guest moieties to favor intermolecular interactions. Their beneficial role has been exploited to enhance photovoltaic, hydrogen production, and CO2 reduction performance, paving the way to a new class of molecular active components for next generation solar devices.