Professor Akira Fujishima, the discoverer of photocatalysis, and Caltech President Somei met to discuss the future of photocatalysis.
Photocatalysis is the work of a former professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, director of the Tokyo University of Science Photocatalysis International Research Center and professor at Tokyo University of Science.Professor Akira Fujishima, who served as the 9th president of the University of Science,About 50 years agoThe discovery is said to be a "world-changing technology."
Professor Fujishima discovered that oxygen is generated when light is shone on a titanium oxide plate placed in water.First discovery in the worldAt the time, it was commonly believed that oxygen was generated when zinc oxide dissolved. However, through experiments, he discovered for the first time in the world that simply shining light on titanium oxide decomposes water into oxygen and hydrogen, generating electricity.
This was the first step in photocatalysis.