Dopant-Driven Electronic and Lattice Softening Enables Transport-Coupled CO₂ Reduction in β-Ag₂Se

Key Points

• The study investigates how lanthanide doping affects electronic and lattice properties to enhance CO₂ reduction in β-Ag₂Se.
• Conducted first-principles calculations to analyze lattice and electronic properties.
• Examined the impact of La and Gd incorporation on transport and kinetics.
• La and Gd doping leads to near-metallic conductivity in β-Ag₂Se.
• Enhanced phonon dynamics correlates with improved surface reaction kinetics.