Incorporation of dopants in semiconductors is commonly used to modify the optical response and improve the efficiency of related devices. A physical understanding with elemental and local sensitivity of the electron excitation and trapping channels which follow photoexcitation is a prerequisite for knowledge-based materials design. By using high-resolution x-ray absorption methods we show that, in V-doped Ti O 2 nanoparticles, subband-gap visible light absorption is predominantly due to excitation of electrons from V ...