What Key Factors Can Open Up Space for New Science?

Measuring the sensitivity and specificity of chemical reactions simultaneously can be a challenge. Often, different analytical modalities are needed to produce an answer. Scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM) has become a key tool for analyzing structure-function-activity mechanisms in electrochemical reactions. However, for complex reactions it provides little information on the outcome of the reaction.

A different modality, mass spectrometry, offers the opposite information: the products of a reaction.

Prof. Lane Baker at Texas A&M University set out to answer a key question: could combining analytical tools like SECCM and mass spectrometry reveal more about electrochemical reactions than either could alone? He wanted to bridge the gap between structural analysis and reaction outcomes, and in doing so, uncover a more complete picture of the processes at play.

Over a year of unstinting endeavor, a twisting story evolved. Of scientists rushing experiments across parking lots. Of the struggle to understand and balance the different requirements of each technique. Of the fundamental, human importance of a steady hand in experimentation.

And finally, the key element for success was collaboration with Prof. Xin Yan, also of Texas A&M. A perfect example of the meeting of minds from different specialisms leading to the whole being greater than the sum of its parts—and the 100^th paper published in ACS Electrochemistry.

The full story, highlighted in this recent Editorial, is instructive for all researchers on how new ideas combined with unusual experiments, collaborative exploration, and sheer perseverance can open up new scientific spaces. Prof. Baker’s conversation with ACS Electrochemistry Editor-in-Chief Pat Unwin is an inspirational account of how breaking down barriers enables the creation of something new.