Theoretical study of electronic structures and magnetic properties in iron clusters (n⩽8)

Kinetics of stepwise nitrogen adsorption by size-selected iron cluster cations: Evidence for size-dependent nitrogen phobia

We present a study of stepwise cryogenic N₂ adsorption on size-selected Fe_n ⁺ (n = 8-20) clusters within a hexapole collision cell held at T = 21-28 K. The stoichiometries of the observed adsorption limits and the kinetic fits of stepwise N₂ uptake reveal cluster size-dependent variations that characterize four structural regions. Exploratory density functional theory studies support tentative structural assignment in terms of icosahedral, hexagonal antiprismatic, and closely packed structural motifs. There are three particularly noteworthy cases, Fe₁₃ ⁺ with a peculiar metastable adsorption limit, Fe₁₇ ⁺ with unprecedented nitrogen phobia (inefficient N₂ adsorption), and Fe₁₈ ⁺ with an isomeric mixture that undergoes relaxation upon considerable N₂ uptake.

Evolution of Ferromagnetic and Antiferromagnetic States in Iron Nitride Clusters FenN and FenN2 (n = 1-10)

First-principles density functional theory calculations on neutral and singly negatively and positively charged iron clusters Fe_n and iron nitride clusters Fe_nN and Fe_nN₂ (n = 1-10) in the range of 1 ≤ n ≤ 10 revealed that there is a strong competition between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic states especially in the Fe_nN₂^0,±1 cluster series. This phenomenon was related to superexchange via a bridging N atom between two iron atoms in the Fe_nN₂^0,±1 cluster series and to a double superexchange effect via a Fe atom shared by two N atoms in the Fe_nN₂^0,±1 series. A thorough examination of the structure-energy-spin state relationships in these clusters is conducted, leading to new insights and confirmation of available experimental results on structural parameters and dissociation energetics. The bond energies of both nitrogen atoms in the Fe_nN₂ series are approximately the same. They weakly depend on the charge of the host cluster and fluctuate around 5.5 eV when moving along the series. The energy of N₂ desorption is relatively small; it varies by about 1.0 eV and depends on the charge of the cluster. The experimental finding that N₂ dissociates on the Fe_n⁺ clusters beginning with n = 4 was supported by the results of our computations. Our computed values of the Fe_n⁺-N bonding energies agree with the experimental data within the experimental uncertainty bars. It was found that the attachment of one or two N atoms does not seriously affect the polarizability, electron affinity, or ionization energy of the host iron clusters independent of the charge.

Dissociation of dinitrogen on iron clusters: a detailed study of the Fe16 + N2 case

The coalescence of two Fe8N as well as the structure of the Fe16N2 cluster were studied using density functional theory with the generalized gradient approximation and a basis set of triple-zeta quality. It was found that the coalescence may proceed without an energy barrier and that the geometrical structures of the resulting clusters depend strongly on the mutual orientations of the initial moieties. The dissociation of N2 is energetically favorable on Fe16, and the nitrogen atoms share the same Fe atom in the lowest energy state of the Fe16N2 species. The attachment of two nitrogen atoms leads to a decrease in the total spin magnetic moment of the ground-state Fe16 host by 6 μB due to the peculiarities of chemical bonding in the magnetic clusters. In order to gain insight into the dependence of properties on charge and to estimate the bonding energies of both N atoms, we performed optimizations of Fe16N and the singly charged ions of both Fe16N2 and Fe16N. It was found that the electronic properties of the Fe16N2 cluster, such as electron affinity and ionization energy, do not appreciably depend on the attachment of nitrogen atoms but that the average binding energy per atom changes significantly. The lowering in total energy due to the attachment of two N atoms was found to be nearly independent of charge. The IR and Raman spectra were simulated for Fe16N2 and its ions, and it was found that the positions of the most intense peaks in the IR spectra strongly depend on charge and therefore present fingerprints of the charged states. The chemical bonding in the ground-state Fe16N20,±1 species was described in terms of the localized molecular orbitals.

Photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional calculations of Fe(n)BO2- clusters

We conducted a study of Fe(n)BO(2)(-) clusters by mass spectrometry and photoelectron spectroscopy. The vertical detachment energies and adiabatic detachment energies of these clusters were evaluated from their photoelectron spectra. We have also performed density-functional calculations of Fe(n)BO(2)(-) (n=1-5) clusters and determined their structures by comparison of theoretical calculations to experimental results. The studies show that BO(2) moiety still maintains its linear structure as the bare BO(2) cluster. BO(2) behaves as a superhalogen. Analysis of molecular orbitals reveals that the highest occupied molecular orbitals of Fe(n)BO(2)(-) clusters are mainly localized on the Fe(n) units.

Photodissociation of [Fe(x)(C24H12)y]+ complexes in the PIRENEA setup: iron-polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon clusters as candidates for very small interstellar grains

Astronomical observations suggest that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that emit at the surface of molecular clouds in the interstellar medium are locally produced by photodestruction of very small grains (VSGs). In this paper, we investigate [Fex(PAH)y]+ clusters as candidates for these VSGs. [FeC24H12]+ and [Fex(C24H12)2]+ (x = 1-3) complexes were formed by laser ablation of a solid target in the PIRENEA setup, a cold ion trap dedicated to astrochemistry. Their photodissociation was studied under continuous visible irradiation. Photodissociation pathways are identified and characteristic time scales for photostability are provided. [Fex(C24H12)2]+ (x = 1-3) complexes sequentially photodissociate by losing iron atoms and coronene units under laboratory irradiation conditions with C24H12+ as the smallest photofragment. The study of the dissociation kinetics gives interesting insights into the structures of the complexes. The dissociation rate is found to increase with the complex size. Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT calculations show that the increase of the number of Fe atoms leads to an increased stability of the complex but also to an increased heating rate in the experimental conditions, due to the presence of strong electronic excitations in the visible. The modeling of the dissociation kinetics of the smallest complex [FeC24H12]+ by using a kinetic Monte Carlo code allows derivation of the dissociation parameters and the internal energy for this complex, showing in particular that it could dissociate under interstellar irradiation conditions. First insights into the dissociation of larger complexes in these conditions are also given.

Engineering the magnetic structure of Fe clusters by Mn alloying

We propose to tailor the magnetic structure of atomic clusters by suitable doping, which produces the nanometric equivalent to alloying. As a proof of principle, we perform a theoretical analysis of Fe(6-x)Mn(x) clusters (x = 0-5), which shows a modulation of the magnetic moment of the clusters as a function of Mn doping and, more importantly, a collinear to noncollinear transition at x = 4.