A snapshot review of nanostructure synthesis and operando characterization

Nanostructures are playing important roles in fundamental research and practical application. The ease of their processing to secondary structures through assembly and the use as catalysts in chemical reactions have inspired much research interest in developing nanoparticles synthesis and characterization techniques. In this snapshot review, the advances in colloidal synthesis, chemical processing, and emerging characterization of novel nanostructures will be reviewed. The working mechanism and rational design of nanostructures with different chemical components, sizes, and shapes will be firstly introduced, with a focus on understanding the complex structure–property correlation of these nanostructured materials. In the second part, advanced in situ electron microscopy characterization technologies will be introduced to illustrate new understandings on nanostructure synthesis, nucleation, and phase transformation. Some operando characterization techniques will be further elaborated to study the complicated catalytic reactions occurring on nanoparticle surfaces, followed by a perspective on the further advances of nanostructures to the next generation.