Birnessite-Related Manganese Nano-Oxides: Dopant Location, a Key Factor to understand their Properties

Abstract

Birnessite related layered manganese oxides are a versatile family of compounds. Here we summarize the wide range of applications that these phases have and the numerous synthesis strategies proposed for their production at the nanoscale. Doping these manganese oxides with other transition elements have revealed as one of the most successful strategies to improve their properties but a direct tool to determine where these dopants are located is still needed. We present here our approach to the synthesis of doped ultrathin birnessite nanoparticles and an atomic resolution electron microscopy study in order to elucidate the positions that the foreign cations occupy.