Artificial Photosynthesis: Celebrating over 100 Years of Giacomo Ciamician's Legacy

Dear Colleagues,

"On the arid lands there will spring up industrial colonies without smoke and without smokestacks; forests of glass tubes will extend over the plains and glass buildings will rise under the deserts; inside of these will take place the photochemical processes that hitherto have been the guarded secret of the plants, but that will have been mastered by human industry"
—— Giacomo Ciamician, Scientia (1912)

One century after the passing of Giacomo Ciamician (1857–1922), we honor the visionary Italian chemist who first conceived the radical idea of artificial photosynthesis. His seminal 1912 paper "The Photochemistry of the Future" prophetically envisioned converting sunlight into storable chemical fuels—a concept that ignited a century of scientific exploration.

This Special Issue commemorates Ciamician’s enduring legacy by showcasing innovative advances across three generations of research:

• Molecular photoelectrochemistry bridging natural/enzymatic mechanisms;
• Heterogeneous photocatalytic systems for CO₂ reduction and water splitting;
• Hybrid bio-nano architectures that push the boundaries of efficiency.

The works presented in this Special Issue will not only reflect the foundational principles laid by pioneers, but also map emerging advances in the generation of solar fuel. As we stand at the threshold of scalable renewable energy solutions, we dedicate this volume to Ciamician’s immortal question: "Is fossil sunlight the only one that can be used?"— an inquiry more urgent today than ever before.

Prof. Dr. Gianguido Ramis
Prof. Dr. Ilenia Rossetti
Dr. Shuang Jiang
Guest Editors

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