Abstract
<jats:p> Production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) requires scalable routes for converting renewable carbon feedstocks into energy-dense hydrocarbon precursors under mild conditions. Here, we report LED- and sunlight-driven photodimerization of isoprene to C <jats:sub>10</jats:sub> hydrocarbon SAF precursors using CsPbBr <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> quantum dots (QDs) coupled with surface-bound triplet energy transmitters (TETs). Temperature-controlled and controlled-growth QD synthesis tuned the optical response and improved spectral overlap with 400 - 500 nm irradiation. Direct QD sensitization gave only trace conversion, whereas the addition of carboxylate-anchored naphthalene TETs markedly enhanced reactivity, with 1-naphthoic acid (1-NA) identified as the most effective transmitter. Under optimized LED irradiation, the yield of isoprene dimers reached 92% after 72 h, and broadened-absorption QDs gave ~85% yield after 48 h. Photoluminescence quenching supports transmitter-mediated interfacial energy transfer as the key step enabling productive triplet sensitization. Furthermore, the QDs retained catalytic performance for at least 10 days under inert storage. Outdoor FEP-tube experiments in northern Sweden and in southern India confirmed solar-light driven isoprene photosensitization using the QD/1-NA system. In India, relative <jats:sup>1</jats:sup> H NMR dimer yields increased with irradiation time and QD loading, reaching ~37% after 18 h with 20 mg mL <jats:sup>-1</jats:sup> QDs. These results establish perovskite QD/TET hybrids as a promising platform for solarlight compatible upgrading of isoprene into C <jats:sub>10</jats:sub> hydrocarbons which are SAF-relevant precursors. When combined with direct production of isoprene from CO <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> by photosynthetic cyanobacteria, this provides a fully solar-light driven route to SAFs that bypasses biomass cultivation and processing. </jats:p>