Microscopic Investigation of Photocatalytic Materials at the Nanoscale.

Recently, nanotechnology has taken an important place in materials science. Not only have traditional materials been miniaturized, nanostructured materials also possess remarkable and unique properties compared to their larger counterparts. As such it has become very important to characterize nanostructured materials at relevant length scales and under realistic conditions. By developing a unique new integrated microscopy platform based on electron microscopy and super-resolution fluorescence microscopy, we target to gain insights into the relation between the structure of nanoparticles and their performance as catalysts. In particular, the light-induced catalytic activity on the surface of 'home-made' metal oxides will be thoroughly studied. These very detailed studies will reveal a lot of additional spatial and temporal information and will allow the rational optimization of nanostructured photocatalysts.