Electronic properties of oxides: Chemical and theoretical approaches

An original analysis of the electronic and chemical properties of oxides is proposed based on the electronegativity χ and the chemical hardness η. This model which has been applied to various oxide based metals, degenerate semiconductors and optical properties of transition metal oxides allows explaining their electronic behaviors: Strong electronegativity and weak chemical hardness characterize oxides of transition elements with high oxidation state. Strong electronegativity and strong chemical hardness feature insulators with a large optical gap. Weak electronegativity and moderate chemical hardness describe alkali and alkaline earth oxides and weak electronegativity and strong chemical hardness are for ionic oxides with a relatively large optical gap. For a few illustrative case studies, ab intio electronic band structure calculations within the density functional theory framework are used.     

Acid–base behavior of oxides and their electronic structure

We attempted to simplify and unify the former concepts describing the acid base character of oxides on the basis of their band structure. Duffy optical basicity, Smith acid scale and Bratsch electronegativity model can simply be linked by taking into account the electronegativity and the chemical hardness of the oxides: an acidic oxide has a strong electronegativity together with a strong chemical hardness while a basic oxide has a low electronegativity associated with a weak chemical hardness.     

Electronegativity and hardness in the chemical approximation

The chemical electronegativity of an atom (Mulliken definition) has been identified with the average value of χ, the electronegativity function given by the rigorous density functional theory. An appropriate definition of hardness is developed, and a scale of hardness for bonded atoms is proposed. The electrodynamical atom model is demonstrated to produce a simple relation between atomic hardness and size. Electronegativity has been calculated for bonded atoms in a variety of molecules and crystals, covalent and ionic, without any specific approximation for the energy function E(q). Expressions for the electronegativity of a molecule have been derived and critically discussed.     

Electronegativity and chemical hardness of organoelement groups

The experimental approaches to estimation of comparative electronegativity and chemical hardness of organometallic groups have been proposed. Qualitative data on the electronegativity of L _nM groups were obtained from ¹⁹F NMR study of model systems 4‐FC₆H₄QML_n (Q = CC, N(R), O, C(O)O, S), (4‐FC₆H₄)₃ SnML _n and (4‐FC₆H₄)₃SnQML _n (Q = O, S), containing a great variety of different organometallic groups containing transition or heavy main‐group metals. The data on chemical hardness of L _nM groups were obtained from NMR study of distribution of different L _nM groups between hard and soft anions. The following basic results have been obtained. (1) The relative electronegativity and chemical hardness of L _nM groups can change in parallel or not with the electronegativity and hardness of the central metal atom. (2) The substituents in Ar can substantially modify electronegativity and hardness of Ar _nM groups; the influence of Ar groups has an inductive nature; the increase in electron‐donating ability of aryl ligands enhances the hardness of Ar _nM cations. (3) The relative electronegativity and hardness of L _nM groups in L _nMX are invariant and do not depend on X.     

Ab initio calculations, electronegativity equalisation and group electronegativity

A correspondence betweenab initio calculations, the principle of electronegativity equalisation and group electronegativity has been established within the framework of Mulliken population analysis. Using this we have calculated electronegativities of some 37 groups/atoms. These electronegativities show excellent linear correlation with¹ J _CC coupling constants in monosubstituted benzenes and Inamoto’si scale and a satisfactory one with Wells’ group electronegativity data. The correspondence however required a scaling of charge (obtained byab initio calculations) and a proportionality between the electronegativity of the neutral group and its hardness. It is shown that using these electronegativity values it is possible to calculate group charges in molecules where groups under consideration interact with each other through σ bond only.     

Triazole, benzotriazole, and naphthotriazole as copper corrosion inhibitors: I. Molecular electronic and adsorption properties

The gas-phase adsorption of 1,2,3-triazole, benzotriazole, and naphthotriazole-considered as corrosion inhibitors-on copper surfaces was studied and characterized using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. We find that the molecule-surface bond strength increases with increasing molecular size, thus following the sequence: triazole相似文献   

Quantification of aromaticity in oxocarbons: the problem of the fictitious "nonaromatic" reference system

Despite the extensive research reported in the literature, the concept of aromaticity has eluded rigorous quantification. The main reason for this undesirable reality is the fact that aromaticity is a differential property. While bond orders, atomic charges and electronegativity differences are properties of the molecule under analysis, the aromaticity concept often refers to the difference between some property of the molecule and that of an artificial "nonaromatic" reference system. A rigorous definition of such a reference system is non-existing and therefore constituting the main barrier to obtain a satisfactory quantification of the aromatic concept. Oxocarbon acids and their anions are examples where the criteria of aromaticity that use reference systems are unsuccessful, only NICS criterion gives satisfactory results. Wiberg bond indexes and 17O NMR chemical shifts are also useful to study such compounds.     

Electronegativities of elements in covalent crystals

A new electronegativity table of elements in covalent crystals with different bonding electrons and the most common coordination numbers is suggested on the basis of covalent potentials of atoms in crystals. For a given element, the electronegativity increases with increasing number of bonding electrons and decreases with increasing coordination number. Particularly, the ionicity of a covalent bond in different environments can be well-reflected by current electronegativity values; that is, the ionicity of chemical bonds increases as the coordination number of the bonded atoms increases. We show that this electronegativity scale can be successfully applied to predict the hardness of covalent and polar covalent crystals, which will be very useful for studying various chemical and physical properties of covalent materials.     

Structure-stability diagrams and stability-reactivity landscapes: a conceptual DFT study

Electrophilicity and hardness have been shown to be adequate in constructing structure-stability diagrams. Maximum hardness principle and minimum electrophilicity principle provide a rough guide toward locating the domains of stability and reactivity in a fitness landscape. Bonding in solids, aromaticity, magic alkali clusters, bond—stretch isomers, multivalent superatoms, etc. have been analyzed within this purview.     

Systematic formulations for electronegativity and hardness and their atomic scales within density functional softness theory

A unified Mulliken valence with Parr ground‐state electronegativity picture is presented. It provides a useful analytical tool on which the absolute hardness as well ionization potential and electron affinity functionals are based. For all these chemical reactivity indices, systematic approximate density functionals are formulated within density functional softness theory and are applied to atomic systems. For the absolute hardness, a special relationship with the new electronegativity ansatz and a particular atomic trend paralleling the absolute electron affinity are established that should complement and augment the earlier finite‐difference energetic approach. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006     

Silaaromaticity in polycyclic systems: a computational study

Density functional theory (B3LYP) calculations were performed to examine the effect of Si substitution on the aromaticity of some polycyclic hydrocarbons using geometric criterion (HOMA), isodesmic isomerization reactions, homodesmotic equations, NICS values, chemical hardness, and out-of-plane distortive tendencies. The HOMA values are lower and the NICS values are higher in the Si-substituted rings compared to those in the hydrocarbon counterpart, whereas the homodesmotic equations predict little loss of aromaticity upon Si replacement in polycylic systems. The chemical hardness values decrease and the out-of-plane distortive tendency increases upon silicon substitution. The relative energies of the positional isomers and the causative factors are analyzed. The high reactivity of some silaaromatics toward dimerization is explained based on local softness indices.     

Toward a semiempirical density functional theory of chemical binding

The new ideas ofbond electronegativity andbond hardness are introduced, and a semiempirical density functional approach to the theory of molecular electronic structure and chemical binding is outlined. There result effective electronegativity equalization procedures that permit calculation of binding energies as well as partial charges. By a modelling of the bond electronegativity and bond hardness, a density functional interpretation of earlier bond charge models is established. Some numerical results are given for diatomic molecules.Dedicated to Professor J. Koutecký on the occasion of his 65th birthday     

Aromatic gold and silver "rings": hydrosilver(I) and hydrogold(I) analogues of aromatic hydrocarbons

Quantum chemical calculations suggest that a series of molecules with the general formula cyclo-Mn(mu-H)n (M = Ag, Au; n = 3-6) are stable. All cyclo-MnHn species, except cyclo-Au(3)H(3), have the same symmetry with the respective aromatic hydrocarbons but differ in that the hydrogen atoms are in bridging positions between the metal atoms and not in terminal positions. The aromaticity of the hydrosilver(I) and hydrogold(I) analogues of aromatic hydrocarbons was verified by a number of established criteria of aromaticity, such as structural, energetic, magnetic, and chemical criteria. In particular, the nucleus-independent chemical shift, the relative hardness, Deltaeta, the electrophilicity index, omega, and the chemical reactivity toward electrophiles are indicative for the aromaticity of the hydrosilvers(I) and hydrogolds(I). A comprehensive study of the structural, energetic, spectroscopic (IR, NMR, electronic, and photoelectron spectra), and bonding properties of the novel classes of inorganic compounds containing bonds that are characterized by a common ring-shaped electron density, more commonly seen in organic molecules, is presented.     

Beyond electronegativity and local hardness: Higher-order equalization criteria for determination of a ground-state electron density

Higher-order global softnesses, local softnesses, and softness kernels are defined along with their hardness inverses. The local hardness equalization principle recently derived by the authors is extended to arbitrary order. The resulting hierarchy of equalization principles indicates that the electronegativity/chemical potential, local hardness, and local hyperhardnesses all are constant when evaluated for the ground-state electron density. The new equalization principles can be used to test whether a trial electron density is an accurate approximation to the true ground-state density and to discover molecules with desired reactive properties, as encapsulated by their chemical reactivity indicators.