Maarten B. J. Roeffaers graduated from the Centre for Surface Chemistry and Catalysis, KU Leuven (Belgium), in 2008 studying zeolite catalysis with fluorescence microscopy. After a postdoctoral stay (2009–2010) with Prof. Xie at Harvard University (USA) on the development and use of coherent Raman microscopy, he returned to the KU Leuven. In 2010, he started his own research group (www.roeffaers-lab.org).
The research in the Roeffaers lab focusses on the establishment of structure-function relationships for nanostructured materials at the smallest possible length scales. To enable this goal, we actively develop and implement novel optical microspectroscopic techniques. While initially focusing on solid catalysts, the research has now expanded to include the in situ investigation of optically active materials and the development of photo(electro)catalysts.
Amongst others, he was awarded a prestigious ERC starting grant (2012) and received the biennial ExxonMobil Chemical European Science and Engineering Award (2015) as well as the EFCATS Young Researcher Award (2021).

SELECTION OF PUBLICATIONS ON NANOSCALE CATALYST CHARACTERIZATION

• G Fleury, MBJ Roeffaers, Correlating Acid Site Distribution and Catalytic Activity in Dealuminated Mordenite at the Single-Particle Level. ACS Catal. 2020, 10, 14801–14809
• J Van Loon, … MBJ Roeffaers, Rationalizing acid zeolite performance at the nanoscale by correlative fluorescence and electron microscopy. ACS Catal. 2017, 7, 5234–5242.
• Z Ristanovic, …, MBJ Roeffaers, B Weckhuysen, High-Resolution Single-Molecule Fluorescence Imaging of Zeolite Aggregates withing Real-Life Fluid Catalytic Cracking Particles. Angew. Chem. - Int. Ed. 2015, 54(6), 1836–1840.
• K Liu, A Kubarev, …, MBJ Roeffaers, Rationalizing Inter- and Intracrystal Heterogeneities in Dealuminated Acid Mordenite Zeolites by Stimulated Raman Scattering Microscopy, Correlated with Super-resolution Fluorescence Microscopy. ACS Nano 2014, 8(12), 12650–12659.
• R Ameloot, …, MBJ Roeffaers, Three-Dimensional Visualization of Defects Formed during the Synthesis of Metal-Organic Frameworks: A Fluorescence Microscopy Study. Angew. Chem.-Int. Ed. 2013, 125: 419–423.
• MBJ Roeffaers, …, J Hofkens, Super-Resolution Reactivity Mapping of Nanostructured Catalyst Particles. Angew. Chem. – Int. Ed. 2009, 48 (49), 9285–9289.
• MBJ Roeffaers, …, J Hofkens, Spatially resolved observation of crystal-face-dependent catalysis by single turnover counting. Nature 2006, 439 (7076), 572–575.

SELECTION OF OTHER MOST IMPORTANT PUBLICATIONS 

• J.A Steele, …, MBJ Roeffaers, Thermal unequilibrium of strained black CsPbI3 thin films. Science, 365 (6454), 679 2019
• D Grandjean, …, MBJ Roeffaers, ..., P Lievens, Origin of the bright photoluminescence of few-atom silver clusters confined in LTA zeolites. Science, 361 (6403), 686, 2018
• O Fenwick, E Coutino-Gonzalez, …, MBJ Roeffaers, J Hofkens, P Samori, Tuning the energetics and tailoring the optical properties of silver clusters confined in zeolites. Nature Materials, 15 (9), 1017, 2016 ​