P-Band Intermediate States Mediate Electron Transfer at Confined Nanoscale

In this perspective article, mainly based on the model of structural water molecules (SWs) as bright color emitters, we briefly summarize the development and theoretical elaboration of P-band intermediate state (PBIS) theory and its application in catalysis, especially in several representative redox reactions. In particular, with a simple equation (2∫ψ2σ1’ + ∫ψ2σ2 + ∫ψ2π =1), we define how the interface sate correlate with the three basic parameters of heterogenous catalysis (conversion, selectivity and stability), and what is the dynamic nature of catalytic active sites. Overall, the proposal of SWs dominated PBIS theory provides new insights into the physical origin of photoluminescence emission of low-dimensional quantum nanodots and the physical nature of nanoconfinement and nanoconfined catalysis.