Dynamic Optical Visualization of Proton Transport Pathways at Water–Solid Interfaces. Issue 2 (26th November 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Yang, Jinmei; Lu, Yuxian; Jin, Lei; Zhao, Chunxiao; Chen, Yuang; Xu, Yang; Chen, Fanfan; Feng, Jiandong
• Is Part Of: Angewandte Chemie international edition. Volume 61:Issue 2(2022)
• Page Start: n/a
• Page End: n/a
• Publication Date: 2021-11-26
• Subjects: interfaces -- kinetics -- nanopores -- optical imaging -- proton transport; Chemistry -- Periodicals; 540
• DOI: 10.1002/anie.202112150
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1433-7851

Abstract

Abstract: Probing proton transport is of vital importance for understanding cellular transport, surface catalysis and fuel cells. Conventional proton transport measurements rely on the use of electrochemical conductivity and do not allow for the direct visualization of proton transport pathways. The development of novel experimental techniques to spatiotemporally resolve proton transport is in high demand. Here, building upon the general conversion of aqueous proton flux into spatially resolved fluorescence signals, we optically visualize proton transport through nanopores and along hydrophilic interfaces. We observed that the fluorescence intensity increased at negative voltage due to lateral transport. Thanks to the temporal resolution of optical imaging, our technique further empowers the analysis of proton transport dynamics. Abstract : We developed a method for imaging aqueous proton transport with spatial resolution and observed the lateral transport of protons along the nanofluidic interface. The dynamics of proton transport can be further captured by quantitative analysis, thanks to the temporal resolution of this optical imaging technique.