Spatially resolved electrochemistry at carbon nanomaterials

Carbon materials have a long history of use as electrodes in electrochemistry, from (bio)electroanalysis to applications in energy technologies such as batteries and fuel cells. With the advent of new forms of nano-carbon, particularly carbon nanotubes and graphene, carbon electrode materials have taken on even greater significance for electrochemical studies.

In my studies I present new views of the electrochemical properties of carbon materials, focusing on major sp² materials such as graphite, graphene and single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). In a correlative-electrochemical microscopy approach, I make use of Scanning Electrochemical Cell Microscopy (SECCM), to reveal major new perspectives on the intrinsic electrochemical activity of materials with unprecedented detail and spatial resolution. The maps of electrode activity obtained by SECCM were complemented with information obtained by other microscopy and spectroscopy techniques (e.g. Atomic Force Microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy), allowing the establishment of structure-activity correlations at the sub-micro scale.