Fig. 1: Chemical structure of studied MoSx allotropes.

Schematic representation of the structure for the two types of MoSx catalysts employed, based on previous reports: (a) c-MoS2 and (b) a-MoS3-x. Below, the two different building block units are visualized. The different S chemical environments found in a-MoS3-x films and self-standing [Mo3S13]2− clusters are highlighted by dashed ellipses and/or arrows. Mo and S atoms are shown in blue and yellow, respectively.