Imaging . Spectroscopy . Chemistry
We want to understand the functions and dynamics of catalytic reactions from nanomaterials using the single molecule fluorescence imaging, and to relate heterogeneous catalyst reaction pathways to structural variations with nanometer spatial resolution. Meanwhile, we will develop a highly sensitive, multiplexed imaging method that improves the detection of single molecules to unambiguously determine single molecule catalytic reactions.
Super-resolution fluorescence imaging on photocatalytic nanomaterials
Single-molecule fluorescence microscopy has achieved great momentum in recent years on investigating chemical reaction heterogeneities and kinetics with nanometer precision. Compared with traditional methods, it shows great advantages in localizing catalytic active species and reactive sites and unveiling underlying reaction mechanisms on various structures (e.g.,1D nanorodes/nanowires, 2D nanosheets/nanoplates, 3D interconnected and hierarchical structures). In our research, we will apply this super-resolution microscopy method to study the single-molecule adsorption, desorption and catalytic activity on various nanomaterials. Due to the remarkable spatial resolution and ability to study the real-time dynamic process, we aim to apply this technique to reveal surface active-site distributions, reaction kinetics, chemical dynamics, and structure-dependent catalytic performance of nanomaterials. Such microscopic information on catalytic process would help establish structure-dynamics relationship at the nanoscale and in turn, provide fundamental guidance on the catalyst design.