Direct visual evidence for the chemical mechanism of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering via charge transfer

We describe the chemical and electromagnetic enhancements of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) for the pyridine molecule absorbed on silver clusters, in which different incident wavelength regions are dominated by different enhancement mechanisms. Through visualization we theoretically investigate the charge transfer (CT) between the molecule and the metal cluster, and the charge redistribution (CR) within the metal on the electronic intracluster collective oscillation excitation (EICOE). The CT between the metal and the molecule in the molecule–metal complex is considered as an evidence for chemical enhancement to SERRS. CR within the metal on EICOE is considered as an evidence for the electromagnetic enhancement by collective plasmons. For the incident wavelength from 300 to 1000 nm, the visualized method of charge difference density can classify the different wavelength regions for chemical and electromagnetic enhancement, which are consistent with the formal fragmented experimental studies. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Scaling relations for implantation of size-selected Au,Ag, and Si clusters into graphite

The deposition of size-selected clusters represents a new route to the fabrication of truly nanometer-scale surface architectures, e.g., nanopores. We report a systematic experimental study, coupled with molecular dynamics simulations, of the implantation depths of size-selected Au7, Ag7, and Si7 clusters in the model graphite substrate. For impact energies between 1.0 and 5.5 keV, we find that the implantation depth scales linearly with the momentum of the clusters for all three types of cluster. This "universal" behavior is consistent with a (viscous) retarding force proportional to the velocity of the cluster, akin to Stokes's law.     

Charge transfer between alkali cluster ions and atoms in the 1 to 10 keV collisional energy range

The cross-sections for collisional charge transfer between singly charged free clusters M _n ⁺ (M = Li, Na; n=1...50) and atomic targets A (cesium, potassium) have been measured as a function of collisional relative velocity in laboratory energy range 1–10 keV. For each cluster size, the experimental values of the charge transfer cross-section are fitted with an universal parametric curve with two independent parameters and v_m, the maximum cross-section and the corresponding velocity. For small size clusters (), the characteristic parameters show strong variations with the number of atoms in the cluster. Abrupt dips observed for n=10 and n=22 are attributed to electronic properties. Charge transfer patterns observed for various collisional systems present similarities, which appear more sensitive to cluster quantum size effects than to collision energy defects. In their whole, the and v_m parameters show differences in both their size evolution and their absolute values discussed in term of projectile and target electronic structures. Received 13 April 2000 and Received in final form 29 June 2000     

Experimental and Theoretical Studies on the Interaction between Isonicotinic Acid Molecules and Silver Nanoclusters

The present paper describes the studies on the adsorption behavior and charge transfer from isonicotinic acid to silver nanoparticles with experiment and theory. Compared with UV–Visible adsorption spectrum, the adsorption spectrum of Ih-Ag₁₃ cluster was quite good agreed with that of silver colloidal nanoparticle. So that one Ag₁₃ cluster as a substrate was used to simulate Raman frequencies of the adsorption configuration. Here, it is demonstrated the calculated Raman spectra are in good agreement with experimental results. The analysis of Mulliken charge was obtained by density functional theory, which indicated the charge characteristics of Ag₁₃ nanoparticle. Once isonicotinic acid molecules were adsorbed on sliver clusters, the charges transfer from isonicotinic acid to silver clusters, so that the surface charges of silver clusters are uneven.     

Co-B非晶态合金中电子转移问题的量子化学研究

根据Co -B非晶态结构的短程有序、Co和B之间是较强的化学作用以及化学键理论 ,设计了ComB2 (m=1～ 4)原子簇模型 ,用DFT方法对其进行高水平的量子化学计算 ,结果表明 ,模型体系ComB2 (m =1～ 4)中 ,B原子供给Co原子电子 ,这与非晶态合金的实验结果一致 ,同时存在B -B直接相连 ,为了比较 ,也选择了ConB (n =1～ 4)模型 ,计算结果与实验不符 ,说明ComB2 (m =1～ 4)原子簇模型更能反映非晶态的结构特点 .     

Neutralization of mass-selected cluster ions by charge transfer reactions

Mass-separated beams of clusters with a single, well-defined number of atoms or molecules are indispensable for studies of cluster properties. This paper presents a technique with the potential to generate such a beam which contains neutral clusters of one size only. For this purpose mass-selected cluster ions have been neutralized by charge transfer reactions in metal and sulphur vapors. Relative charge exchange cross sections were measured for different cluster sizes. They reveal pronounced variations of the electronic structure of these particles. Thus, the study of charge transfer processes is introduced as a method to probe the positions of electronic energy levels in neutral clusters.     

Probing the chemical reactivity of free titanium clusters by x-ray absorption spectroscopy

Synchrotron radiation-based experimental techniques are largely employed for the characterization of the reactivity of finite size systems; in particular, x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is a suitable tool to shed light on the local electronic structure and chemical status of atoms in nano-objects, as it is very sensitive to the local bonding environment of the probed site. In supported clusters intrinsic properties and reactivity are largely distorted and obscured by the changes imposed by the growth procedure and by the influence of the substrate, so the attainability of experiments on free clusters reacting with species in the gas phase is a primary goal in the development of cluster science. In this paper we report a proof of principle of the applicability of gas phase XAS technique to titanium and titanium oxide, hydride and hydrate systems. Experiments are performed by coupling a pulsed microplasma cluster source (PMCS) with a third generation synchrotron light source, and measuring the intensity of the electron yield coming from the interaction of VUV photons with the clusters seeded in a supersonic beam.     

Experimental studies of phase transitions in isolated metal clusters

The reactions of isolated, neutral transition metal clusters with small molecules are used to probe cluster structure and to identify changes in structure with cluster size. Examples are presented of reactivity, adsorbate uptake, and product composition studies. The general conclusion is that transition metal clusters seem to have structure (are “solid”) under typical experimental conditions, and that their structure, i.e., the way the atoms pack, can change many times in the growth sequence from small clusters to bulk metal. These phase changes are often accompanied by dramatic changes in both chemical and physical properties. Evidence is presented for the existence of isomers of certain cluster sizes for some metals. In a few cases, the chemical evidence can be used to propose possible cluster structure; this is illustrated for iron and nickel clusters.     

Charge transfer and dissociation in collisions of metal clusters with atoms

We present a combined theoretical and experimental study of charge transfer and dissociation in collisions of slow Li31(2+) clusters with Cs atoms. We provide a direct quantitative comparison between theory and experiment and show that good agreement is found only when the exact experimental time of flight and initial cluster temperature are taken into account in the theoretical modeling. We demonstrate the validity of the simple physical image that consists in explaining evaporation as resulting from a collisional energy deposit due to cluster electronic excitation during charge transfer.     

基于极紫外自由电子激光的中性团簇红外光谱

团簇在能源催化和大气雾霾等诸多化学过程中广泛存在,团簇表征与性能研究对诠释化学反应机理至关重要. 然而,中性团簇由于缺乏电荷、难于探测,实验研究非常困难. 鉴于上述情况,发展了基于极紫外自由电子激光的中性团簇红外光谱实验方法,用于质量选择中性团簇的高灵敏探测、结构表征和性能研究. 红外-极紫外衰减和红外+极紫外增强光谱实验方法已被应用于一些中性水团簇和一些中性金属羰基化合物的研究. 由于极紫外自由电子激光的波长范围涵盖了绝大多数中性团簇的第一电离势,这一独特的实验方法为开展各类中性团簇红外谱学和结构的研究打开了大门. 本文综述了这些红外光谱实验方法及其在中性团簇研究中的应用.     

Supported fe nanoclusters: evolution of magnetic properties with cluster size

Using a density functional approach, we study structural and magnetic properties of small Fe(n) clusters (n相似文献   

原子设计材料科学与技术(Ⅰ)

科学实验技术的发展，使得人们有可能在原子尺度上人工合成材料，例如，原子团簇、团簇材料、线性链、多层异质结构、超薄膜等．这些材料的特征是维数低，对称性减小，几何特征显著．文章强调原子工程作为这些领域的交接点，重点讨论了原子设计材料的合成、表征和应用．考察了有限尺度和减少维数对这些材料的电磁、光和化学性质的影响和作用．从物理学、化学、材料科学和化学工程等多学科的角度研究了这一新出现领域的现状和未来     

Direct visual evidence for the chemical mechanism of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering via charge transfer: (II) Binding‐site and quantum‐size effects

We describe quantum‐size and binding‐site effects on the chemical and local field enhancement mechanisms of surface‐enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS), in which the pyridine molecule is adsorbed on one of the vertices of the Ag₂₀ tetrahedron. We first investigated the influence of the binding site on normal Raman scattering (NRS) and excited state properties of optical absorption spectroscopy. Second, we investigated the quantum‐size effect on the electromagnetic (EM) and chemical mechanism from 300 to 1000 nm with charge difference density. It is found that the strong absorption at around 350 nm is mainly the charge transfer (CT) excitation (CT between the molecule and the silver cluster) for large clusters, which is the direct evidence for the chemical enhancement mechanism for SERRS; for a small cluster the strong absorption around 350 nm is mainly intracluster excitation, which is the direct evidence for the EM enhancement mechanism. This conclusion is further confirmed with the general Mie theory. The plasmon peak in EM enhancement will be red‐shifted with the increase of cluster size. The influence of the binding site and quantum‐size effects on NRS, as well as chemical and EM enhancement mechanisms on SERRS, is significant. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structural and electronic properties of V, Nb and Ta nanoclusters by tight-binding molecular dynamics simulations

We present tight-binding molecular dynamics (TBMD) calculations on V, Nb and Ta nanoclusters with N = 15, 65, 175 and 369 atoms. We found that rhombic dodecahedra are energetically favoured over rhombic hexahedra and icosahedra, with V forming the most compact cluster with the gyration radius increasing with the cluster size. In addition, from the calculated electronic density of states we found that the cluster size plays an important role in the HOMO-LUMO gap and that an increase in cluster size results in enhancement of the electronic density around the Fermi level. Furthermore, we found that the small clusters (N = 15, 65) exhibit energy gap that persists even at 900 K. These findings originate from charge transfer occurring between the inner and outer cluster atoms; interestingly, we found that in the small N = 15, 65 clusters electronic charge accumulates at each surface site at the expense of the inner cluster atoms, while in the larger clusters, N = 175 and 369, charge is gathered on the central particles of the cluster, suggesting different sub-surface character of the clusters. These findings are in agreement with available experimental and theoretical data and promise to offer important information for creating nanostructured materials with improved properties suitable for multiple technological applications.     

Clusters as new materials

Over the past two decades methods have been developed to produce clusters with an exactly determined number of atoms. Due to their finite size these small particles have totally different structures and `materials properties' than their bulk crystalline counterparts. Even more, these properties sometimes change drastically whenever a single atom is added to or removed from the cluster. This opens the pathway for a whole new world of tailor made materials in the future. In this article we describe the present state of the knowledge of the properties of clusters of atoms which in their bulk form conventional metals or semiconductors. The questions addressed include the development of the electronic structure as a function of cluster size and for example what remains of the `metallic' properties of the bulk solid in these very small clusters. Technological advances are expected using clusters on a specific support material in the areas of catalysis, magnetic storage media or electronic materials, and even solids assembled totally from clusters. Examples from each of these fields will be discussed in the context of this article.     

Charging and stabilization of Pd atoms and clusters on an electron-rich MgO surface

We report density functional theory calculations on the interaction of Pd atoms and small Pd clusters with an electron-rich MgO surface. This surface can be generated by forming a specific kind of defects, named (H⁺)(e⁻) centers, using well known chemical recipes. By deposition of gas-phase Pd atoms on the properly functionalized MgO surface, one can generate collections of small Pd cluster anions with peculiar chemical properties. The (H⁺)(e⁻) centers act as nucleation sites for diffusing Pd atoms and favor the formation of small, thermally stable clusters. The presence of an extra charge on the metal cluster results in a large vibrational red-shift of adsorbed CO molecules. The present results intend to stimulate experimental work to produce stable metal cluster anions on the surface of an ionic oxide.     

Photoelectron spectroscopy of size-selected cluster ions using synchrotron radiation

A new experimental setup for photoelectron spectroscopy of size-selected cluster ions using synchrotron VUV radiation as generated by the Swiss Light Source is presented. An intense positively charged cluster ion beam is produced in a high-intensity magnetron sputter source. The clusters are subsequently mass selected in a sector magnet. To maximize the residence time of the cluster ions in the ionization region of the velocity map imaging spectrometer, the cluster ion beam is decelerated where it crosses the light beam. First experiments on (MoO₃) _n ⁺ (n = 69 and 59) cluster cations show that the approach is capable of delivering photoelectron spectra of size-selected transition metal cluster ions.     

Structure and stability of a silicon cluster on sequential doping with carbon atoms

SiC is a highly stable material in bulk. On the other hand, alloys of silicon and carbon at nanoscale length are interesting from both technological as well fundamental view point and are being currently synthesized by various experimental groups (Truong et. al., 2015 [26]). In the present work, we identify a well-known silicon cluster viz., Si₁₀ and dope it sequentially with carbon atoms. The evolution of electronic structure (spin state and the structural properties) on doping, the charge redistribution and structural properties are analyzed. It is interesting to note that the ground state SiC clusters prefer to be in the lowest spin state. Further, it is seen that carbon atoms are the electron rich centres while silicon atoms are electron deficient in every SiC alloy cluster. The carbon–carbon bond lengths in alloy clusters are equivalent to those seen in fullerene molecules. Interestingly, the carbon atoms tend to aggregate together with silicon atoms surrounding them by donating the charge. As a consequence, very few Si–Si bonds are noted with increasing concentrations of C atoms in a SiC alloy. Physical and chemical stability of doped clusters is studied by carrying out finite temperature behaviour and adsorbing O₂ molecule on Si₉C and Si₈C₂ clusters, respectively.     

Optical absorption of isolated silver cluster-tryptophan: A joint experimental and theoretical study

We present a joint experimental and theoretical gas phase study of photoabsorption and photofragmentation of silver cluster-biomolecule complexes. We demonstrate on the example of [ Trp.Ag₃] ⁺ that binding of the metal cluster to a biomolecule leads to a significant enhancement of the photoabsorption in comparison with [Trp.H]⁺ and [Trp.Ag]⁺. This enhancement arises due to the coupling between the excitations in the metallic subunit with charge transfer excitations between silver cluster and tryptophan. Our experimental studies show that silver clusters up to eleven atoms can be bound to tryptophan and we present first results on the photofragmentation of the Trp.Ag₁₁ ⁺ complex cation, in which properties of cluster subunit remain preserved.     

The adsorption of CO on transition metal clusters: A case study of cluster surface chemistry

We present a discussion of recent experimental studies on the interaction of single CO molecules with transition metal clusters in the gas-phase, typically in the size range of 3 to more than 20 atoms, emphasizing specifically the insights gained from vibrational spectroscopy. Trends across the transition metals (TM) for molecular vs. dissociative chemisorption as well as for adsorption geometries are discussed and compared with the behaviour of CO adsorbed on extended surfaces. The dependence of the frequency of the internal CO stretch vibration on the size and charge of the cluster enables one to gauge quantitatively the effects of charge transfer between deposited nanoparticles and the substrate as well as of electron transfer due to the binding of co-adsorbed species.