Imaging, understanding, and control of nanoscale materials transformations

Abstract

The development of liquid cells for transmission electron microscopy has enabled breakthroughs in our ability to follow nanoscale structural, morphological, or chemical changes during materials growth and applications. Time-resolved high-resolution imaging and chemical analysis through liquids opened the opportunity to capture nanoscale dynamic processes of materials, including reaction intermediates and the transformation pathways. In this article, a series of work is highlighted with topics ranging from liquid cell developments to in situ studies of nanocrystal growth and transformations, dendrite formation, and suppression of lithium dendrites through in situ characterization of the solid–electrolyte interphase chemistry. The understanding garnered is expected to accelerate the discovery of novel materials for applications in energy storage, catalysis, sensors, and other functional devices.