Rohan Mahajan, 17, of Cupertino, submitted a materials science project to the Intel Science Talent Search, a program of Society for Science & the Public, that researched ways to improve the efficiency of photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells, used in sustainable hydrogen production. PEC cells consist of a semiconductor photoanode and a platinum cathode, and use sunlight to generate hydrogen and oxygen from water. Rohan developed a new way to dope the photoanode (titanium dioxide) with sulfur. He synthesized nanowires—enhanced by elemental doping, quantum dot sensitization, or both—and showed that some of these configurations increased the light absorption of the photoelectrodes more than sixfold. This approach could be used to further increase the efficiency of PEC devices and might also be applicable to photovoltaic cells. Rohan attends The Harker School in San Jose, where he is president of the chemistry club and captain of the debate team. The son of Umesh and Manjula Mahajan, he serves on the Bay Area Youth Health Advisory Board. Rohan also volunteers with both the Pacific Free Clinic, where he helps diagnose patients and instruct health education classes, and the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital working in the maternity department.

Tags: education, Intel Inspire, Intel Science Talent Search Finalists, Rohan Mahajan, Society for Science & the Public

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