Morphology and Light‐Dependent Spatial Distribution of Spin Defects in Carbon Nitride

Carbonnitride(CN)is a heterogeneousphotocatalystthatcombinesgoodstructuralpropertiesanda broad scope. The photocatalytic efficiency of CN is associated with the presence of defective and radical species. An accurate description of defectives tates—both at a local and extended level—is key to develop a thorough mechanistic understanding of the photophysics of CN. In turn, this will maximise the generation and usage of photogenerated charge carriers and minimise wasteful charge recombination. Here the influence of morphology and light-excitation on the number and chemical nature of radical defects is assessed. By exploiting the magnetic dipole-dipole coupling, the spatial distribution of native radicals in CN is derived with high precision. From the analysis an average distance in therange1.99–2.34nm is determined, which corresponds to pairs of radicals located approximately fourtri-s-triazine units apart