Characterization of Catalysts by Advanced Scanning Probe Microscopy and Spectroscopy

Considering that there is a shortage of sustainable resources and that serious environmental issues need to be solved, the development of efficient catalysts has attracted a lot attention globally for energy saving and environmental improvement. In the last few decades, great progresses have been made in terms of fabrication and application of catalysts, however, systematic characterization with advanced technology and methods that enable researchers to have a detailed understanding of the catalysts’ properties and catalytic reactions, especially where an interface is present, are still limited. This Review focusses on the applications of advanced Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) and Spectroscopy techniques for the characterization of catalytic materials and their related reactions. A detailed description of advanced SPM and Spectroscopy techniques is introduced, followed by their applications in the characterization of surfaces and properties of common ordered catalytic materials including some coordination polymers and metal oxides. Various properties of these catalytic materials, such as conductivity, piezoelectricity, nanomechanics, photoresponse, and others, characterized by SPM and Spectroscopy are discussed. Subsequently, we introduce the high‐resolution imaging of chemical reactions and bond configuration by high‐resolution non‐contact Atomic Force Microscopy (NC‐AFM). Finally, the challenges involved in the development of SPM and Spectroscopy and an outlook for future research are presented. This Review provides fundamental insights into the characterization of heterogeneous catalysts and viewpoints to the development of smart catalytic materials.