Research Interests

Current research activities focused on design and synthesis of mesoporous nanostructured materials and their applications, including:

• Mesoporous metal-oxide and metal-chalcogenide semiconductors
• Periodically ordered mesoporous metal oxide - polyoxometalate composite frameworks
• Self-assembled nanoporous networks from functional chalcogenide nanoparticles
• Structural and chemical modification of nanocomposite frameworks
• Applications in heterogeneous photocatalysis, solar fuel production and environmental remediation

Short Curriculum Vitae

Gerasimos Armatas received his B.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Ioannina in 1998. He obtained his master’s degree in Bioinorganic Chemistry in 2000 and his doctoral degree in Chemistry in 2003 from the same University. He did his Ph.D. work with Prof. P. Pomonis on the synthesis and pore structure characterization of nanoporous silicate materials. From 2004 to 2006 he was a post-doctoral research associate at the Chemistry Department of Michigan State University in USA, working with Prof. Mercouri Kanatzidis on the synthesis of mesostructured elemental semiconductors such as germanium and silicon. While in 2006 he moved to the Chemistry Department of Northwestern University in IL, USA, where he worked on the development of new mesoporous Ge-based intermetallic and metal chalcogenide semiconductors. In 2008 he was appointed Assistant Professor at the Department of Materials Science and Technology of the University of Crete, and he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2016 and to Professor in 2022.

Selected Recent Publications

• Bra, I. Vamvasakis, E.K. Andreou, G. Vailakis, G. Kopidakis, G.S. Armatas. Modulating Interfacial Charge Redistribution of Ni₂P/CuCo₂S₄ p-n Nano-heterojunctions for Efficient Electrocatalytic Overall Water Splitting. Int. J. Hydrogen Energy, doi: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2023.03.205 (2023).
• E.D. Koutsouroubi, I. Vamvasakis, M.G. Minotaki, I.T. Papadas, Ch. Drivas, S.A. Choulis, G. Kopidakis, S. Kennou, G.S. Armatas. Ni-doped MoS₂ Modified Graphitic Carbon Nitride Layered Hetero-nanostructures as Highly Efficient Photocatalysts for Environmental Remediation. Appl. Catal. B: Environ., 297, 120419 (2021).
• A. Pournara, S. Rapti, A. Valmas, I. Margiolaki, E.K. Andreou, G.S. Armatas, A. Tsipis, J. Plakatouras, D.L. Giokas, M.J. Manos. Alkylamino-Terephthalate Ligands Stabilize 8-Connected Zr⁴⁺ MOFs with Highly Efficient Sorption for Toxic Se Species. J. Mater. Chem. A, 9, 3379–3387 (2021).
• I. Daskalakis, I. Vamvasakis, I.T. Papadas, S. Tsatsos, S.A. Choulis, S. Kennou, G.S. Armatas. Surface Defect Engineering of Mesoporous Cu/ZnS Nanocrystal-Linked Networks for Improved Visible-Light Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production. Inorg. Chem. Front., 7, 4687–4700 (2020).
• Vamvasakis, I.T. Papadas, Th. Tzanoudakis, Ch. Drivas, S.A. Choulis, S. Kennou, G.S. Armatas. Visible-Light Photocatalytic H₂ Production Activity of β-Ni(OH)₂ Modified CdS Mesoporous Nano-Heterojunction Networks. ACS Catal., 8, 8726–8738 (2018).
• I.T. Papadas, A. Savva, A. Ioakeimidis, P. Eleftheriou, G.S. Armatas, S.A. Choulis. Employing Surfactant-Assisted Hydrothermal Synthesis to Control CuGaO₂ Nanoparticle Formation and Improved Carrier Selectivity of Perovskite Solar Cells. Mater. Today Energy, 8, 57–64 (2018).
• E. Skliri, J. Miao, J. Xie, G. Liu, T. Salim, B. Liu, Q. Zhang, G.S. Armatas. Assembly and Photochemical Properties of Mesoporous Networks of Spinel Ferrite Nanoparticles for Environmental Photocatalytic Remediation. Appl. Catal. B: Environ., 227, 330–339 (2018).
• G. Velegraki, J. Miao, Ch. Drivas, B. Liu, S. Kennou, G.S. Armatas. Fabrication of 3D Mesoporous Networks of Assembled CoO Nanoparticles for Efficient Photocatalytic Reduction of Aqueous Cr(VI). Appl. Catal. B: Environ., 221, 635–644 (2018).
• I. Vamvasakis, B. Liu, G.S. Armatas. Size Effects of Platinum Nanoparticles in the Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production over 3D Mesoporous Networks of CdS and Pt Nanojunctions. Adv. Funct. Mater., 26, 8062–8071 (2016).
• I.T. Papadas, I. Vamvasakis, I. Tamiolakis, G.S Armatas. Templated Self-Assembly of Colloidal Nanocrystals into Three-Dimensional Mesoscopic Structures: A Perspective on the Synthesis and Catalytic Prospects. Chem. Mater., 28, 2886–2896 (2016).