Unravelling the key role of surface features behind facet-dependent photocatalysis of anatase TiO

The high activity of nanocrystallites is commonly attributed to the terminal high-energy facets. However, we demonstrate that the high activity of the anatase TiO 2 (001) facet in photocatalytic H 2 evolution is not due to its high intrinsic surface energy, but local electronic effects created by surface features on the facet. The high activity of the anatase TiO 2 (001) facet in photocatalytic H 2 evolution is due to local electronic effects created by surface F on the facet.