Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy

A brief overview about additional recent applications and developments of scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) is given in order to demonstrate to the reader the large potential and flexibility that SECM, as a technique alone or in combination with other techniques, provides. The electrode-electrolyte interface changes dynamically during almost all electrochemical processes. In order to study these changes, many efforts are being made to combine electrochemical measurements with techniques that enable the spectroscopic characterization of the electrochemical interface in real time. One approach is the in situ parallel measurement of the electrochemical reactivity and of the vibrational modes of micrometric sample sites by combining SECM with Raman spectroscopy. The implementation of electrochemical impedance microscopy (EIS) in SECM measurements is known as scanning EIS (SEIM). Finally, a conclusion is drawn with an outlook on the expected future developments and applications of SECM.