(Invited) Interfacial Chemistry As an Enabling Tool in the Development of Transition Metal Phosphide Electrocatalysts

We are interested in achieving control of heterogeneous interfaces to promote inner-sphere electron-proton-transfer reactions using insights from molecular chemistry. Toward this end, we are developing solution-phase methods for the synthesis and post-synthetic modification of colloidal nanostructures with low overpotentials and high activity for multi-electron, multi-proton electrocatalytic reactions. Ligand exchange, surface etching, and covalent modification will be presented as complementary methods for altering the catalytic activity of colloidal transition metal phosphide electrocatalysts. A combination of electrochemical characterization, structural analysis, and electronic structure characterization will be presented. Together with stoichiometric probes of inner-sphere reactivity, these data will serve to reveal mechanistic details and design principles for catalysis in these systems.