STEM imaging of single Pd atoms in activated carbon fibers considered for hydrogen storage

Aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy was used to demonstrate the feasibility of imaging individual Pd atoms that are highly dispersed throughout the volume of activated carbon fibers. Simultaneous acquisition of high-angle annular dark-field and bright-field images allows correlation of the location of single Pd atoms with microstructural features of the carbon host material. Sub-Ångström imaging conditions revealed that 18 wt% of the total Pd content is dispersed as single Pd atoms in three re-occurring local structural arrangements. The identified structural configurations may represent effective storage sites for molecular hydrogen through Kubas complex formation as discussed in detail in the preceding article.