Abstract Conflicts between the limited energy resources and the continuingly growing demand of the industry accompanied by worsening climate change have pushed the development of energy storage and conversion devices to the center of the research society. Electrocatalysis, which converts chemical energy and electricity to one another, has emerged as a potential solution for providing affordable clean energy and alleviating the environmental crisis. Defects with zero to three dimensions, which can intrinsically influence the electronic structure of the electrocatalysts and its interaction with the surrounding environment, has made the rational design and preparation of electrocatalysts with high activity, long-term stability and acceptable Faradaic efficiency be readily guaranteed. Here, we review the significant role of the defects in selected electrocatalytic processes based on the understanding of the link between the physics and chemistry of the defects. After a background introduction, we give a brief discussion of the formation process of the defects, along with the emerging preparation methods to generate imperfections in the electrocatalysts. Furthermore, a basic-theory-and-practice-combined introduction of the advanced characterization methods for the identification and analysis of defects will be presented. Next, we focus on the recent progress that has been achieved in developing efficient defect-featured electrocatalysts in a wide range of electrocatalytic processes. Finally, we conclude the challenges and opportunities in this promising and thriving field from our perspective.

中文翻译：

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用于增强电催化的点缺陷优化电子分布：走向缺陷的完美

摘要 有限的能源资源与不断增长的工业需求之间的冲突，伴随着气候变化的恶化，将储能和转换装置的发展推向了研究社会的中心。电催化将化学能和电能相互转化，已成为提供负担得起的清洁能源和缓解环境危机的潜在解决方案。零到三个维度的缺陷可以从本质上影响电催化剂的电子结构及其与周围环境的相互作用，使得合理设计和制备具有高活性、长期稳定性和可接受的法拉第效率的电催化剂变得容易得到保证。这里，我们基于对缺陷物理和化学之间联系的理解，回顾了缺陷在选定电催化过程中的重要作用。在背景介绍之后，我们简要讨论了缺陷的形成过程，以及在电催化剂中产生缺陷的新兴制备方法。此外，还将介绍用于识别和分析缺陷的先进表征方法的基础理论和实践相结合。接下来，我们重点关注在广泛的电催化过程中开发具有缺陷特征的高效电催化剂方面取得的最新进展。最后，我们从我们的角度总结了这个充满希望和蓬勃发展的领域的挑战和机遇。