Ionization of water in interfacial electric fields: An electrochemical view

High electric fields promote ionization of water, yet relatively little is known about this topic due to the difficulty of generating such fields. The high field capability of field emitter tips enables study of ionization in water layers. Results from this work include ionization fields, water layer morphology, dielectric properties, coadsorbate interactions, cluster distributions of hydrated hydronium ions H+(H2O)(m), and field ionization images. These experimental results, combined with theoretical findings, are interpreted in the context of four examples from electrochemistry; double layer structure, hydrogen oxidation, CO oxidation, and oxygen reduction; to reveal the research frontier in interfacial ionization of water. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier B.V.