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Mitrushchenkov AO, Pilar de Lara-Castells M. High-level ab initio evidence of bipyramidal Cu 5 clusters as fluxional Jahn-Teller molecules. Chemphyschem 2023; 24:e202300317. [PMID: 37442814 DOI: 10.1002/cphc.202300317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023]
Abstract
Novel highly selective synthesis techniques have enable the production of atomically precise monodisperse metal clusters (AMCs) of subnanometer size. These AMCs exhibit 'molecule-like' structures that have distinct physical and chemical properties, significantly different from those of nanoparticles and bulk material. In this work, we study copper pentamer Cu5 clusters as model AMCs by applying both density functional theory (DFT) and high-level (wave-function-based) ab initio methods, including those which are capable of accounting for the multi-state multi-reference character of the wavefunction at the conical intersection (CI) between different electronic states and augmenting the electronic basis set till achieving well-converged energy values and structures. After assessing the accuracy of a high-level multi-multireference ab initio protocol for the well-known Cu3 case, we apply it to demonstrate that bypiramidal Cu5 clusters are distorted Jahn-Teller (JT) molecules. The method is further used to evaluate the accuracy of single-reference approaches, finding that the coupled cluster singles and doubles and perturbative triples CCSD(T) method delivers the results closer to our ab initio predictions and that dispersion-corrected DFT can outperform the CCSD method. Finally, we discuss how JT effects and, more generally, conical intersections, are intimately connected to the fluxionality of AMCs, giving them a 'floppy' character that ultimately facilitates their interaction with environmental molecules and thus enhances their functioning as catalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander O Mitrushchenkov
- Université Paris-Est, Laboratoire de Modélisation et Simulation Multi Echelle UMR 8208 CNRS, Univ Gustave Eiffel, 5 Bd Descartes, 77454, Marne la Vallée, Cedex 2, France
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2
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Fernández B, Pi M, de Lara-Castells MP. Superfluid helium droplet-mediated surface-deposition of neutral and charged silver atomic species. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2023. [PMID: 37317779 DOI: 10.1039/d3cp01303k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Experimental and theoretical work has delivered evidence of the helium nanodroplet-mediated synthesis and soft-landing of metal nanoparticles, nanowires, clusters, and single atoms on solid supports. Recent experimental advances have allowed the formation of charged metal clusters into multiply charged helium nanodroplets. The impact of the charge of immersed metal species in helium nanodroplet-mediated surface deposition is proved by considering silver atoms and cations at zero-temperature graphene as the support. By combining high-level ab initio intermolecular interaction theory with a full quantum description of the superfluid helium nanodroplet motion, evidence is presented that the fundamental mechanism of soft-deposition is preserved in spite of the much stronger interaction of charged species with surfaces, with high-density fluctuations in the helium droplet playing an essential role in braking them. Corroboration is also presented that the soft-landing becomes favored as the helium nanodroplet size increases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Berta Fernández
- Department of Physical Chemistry, University of Santiago de Compostela, E-15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Martí Pi
- Departament FQA, Facultat de Física, Universitat de Barcelona, Diagonal 645, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (IN2UB), Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
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3
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Vilà A, González M. Quantum dynamics of the Br 2 (B-excited state) photodissociation in superfluid helium nanodroplets: importance of the recombination process. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:24353-24361. [PMID: 36178095 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp02984g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
We have studied the Br2 photodissociation dynamics (B ← X electronic transition) of Br2(v = 0, X)@(4He)N doped nanodroplets (T = 0.37 K) at zero angular momentum, with N in the 100-1000 interval. To do this, we have used a quantum mechanical hybrid strategy proposed by us and, as far as we know, this is the second quantum dynamics study available on the photodissociation of molecules in superfluid helium nanodroplets. While the results obtained for some properties are qualitatively similar to those reported previously by us for the Cl2(B ← X) related case (in particular, the oscillating Br final velocity distribution which also arises from quantum interferences), large differences are evident in three key properties: the photodissociation mechanism and probability and the time scale of the process. This can be interpreted on the basis of the significantly lower excitation energy achieved by the Br2(B ← X) transition and the higher reduced mass of Br-Br in comparison to the chlorine case. The Br2(B) photodissociation dynamics is significantly more complex than that of Cl2(B) and leads to the fragmentation of the initial wave packet. Thus, the probability of non-dissociation is equal to 17, 18, 51, 85 and 100% for N = 100, 200, 300, 500 and 1000, respectively, while for chlorine this probability is equal to zero. In spite of the very large experimental difficulties that exist for obtaining nanodroplets with a well defined size, we hope that these results will encourage experimentalists to investigate these interesting systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnau Vilà
- Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física and IQTC, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Miguel González
- Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física and IQTC, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
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4
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Niman JW, Kamerin BS, Villers TH, Linker TM, Nakano A, Kresin VV. Probing the presence and absence of metal-fullerene electron transfer reactions in helium nanodroplets by deflection measurements. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2022; 24:10378-10383. [PMID: 35438706 DOI: 10.1039/d2cp00751g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Metal-fullerene compounds are characterized by significant electron transfer to the fullerene cage, giving rise to an electric dipole moment. We use the method of electrostatic beam deflection to verify whether such reactions take place within superfluid helium nanodroplets between an embedded C60 molecule and either alkali (heliophobic) or rare-earth (heliophilic) atoms. The two cases lead to distinctly different outcomes: C60Nan (n = 1-4) display no discernable dipole moment, while C60Yb is strongly polar. This suggests that the fullerene and small alkali clusters fail to form a charge-transfer bond in the helium matrix despite their strong van der Waals attraction. The C60Yb dipole moment, on the other hand, is in agreement with the value expected for an ionic complex.
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Affiliation(s)
- John W Niman
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0484, USA.
| | - Benjamin S Kamerin
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0484, USA.
| | - Thomas H Villers
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0484, USA.
| | - Thomas M Linker
- Collaboratory for Advanced Computing and Simulations, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0242, USA
| | - Aiichiro Nakano
- Collaboratory for Advanced Computing and Simulations, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0242, USA
| | - Vitaly V Kresin
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0484, USA.
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de Lara-Castells MP. First-principles modelling of the new generation of subnanometric metal clusters: Recent case studies. J Colloid Interface Sci 2022; 612:737-759. [PMID: 35033919 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2021.12.186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The very recent development of highly selective techniques making possible the synthesis and experimental characterization of subnanometric (subnanometer-sized) metal clusters (even single atoms) is pushing our understanding far beyond the present knowledge in materials science, driving these clusters as a new generation of quantum materials at the lower bounds of nanotechnology. When the size of the metal cluster is reduced to a small number of atoms, the d-band of the metal splits into a subnanometric d-type molecular orbitals network in which all metal atoms are inter-connected, with the inter-connections having the length of a chemical bond (1-2 Å). These molecular characteristics are at the very core of the high stability and novel properties of the smallest metal clusters, with their integration into colloidal materials interacting with the environment having the potential to further boost their performance in applications such as luminescence, sensing, bioimaging, theranostics, energy conversion, catalysis, and photocatalysis. Through the presentation of very recent case studies, this Feature Article is aimed to illustrate how first-principles modelling, including methods beyond the state-of-the-art and an interplay with cutting-edge experiments, is helping to understand the special properties of these clusters at the most fundamental level. Moreover, it will be discussed how superfluid helium droplets can act both as nano-reactors and carriers to achieve the synthesis and surface deposition of metal clusters. This concept will be illustrated with the quantum simulation of the helium droplet-assisted soft-landing of a single Au atom onto a titanium dioxide (TiO2) surface. Next, it will be shown how the application of first-principles methods have disclosed the fundamental reasons why subnanometric Cu5 clusters are resistant to irreversible oxidation, and capable of increasing and extending into the visible region the solar absorption of TiO2, of augmenting its efficiency for photo-catalysis beyond a factor of four, also considering the decomposition and photo-activation of CO2 as a prototypical (photo-) catalytic reaction. Finally, I will discuss how the modification of the same material with subnanometric Ag5 clusters has converted it into a "reporter" of a surface polaron property as well as a novel two-dimensional polaronic material.
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Blancafort-Jorquera M, González M. Vibrational energy relaxation of a diatomic molecule in a superfluid helium nanodroplet: influence of the nanodroplet size, interaction energy and energy gap. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:25961-25973. [PMID: 34783338 DOI: 10.1039/d1cp03629g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The influence of the nanodroplet size, molecule-helium interaction potential energy and ν = 1 - ν = 0 vibrational energy gap on the vibrational energy relaxation (VER) of a diatomic molecule (X2) in a superfluid helium nanodroplet [HeND or (4He)N; finite quantum solvent at T = 0.37 K] has been studied using a hybrid quantum approach recently proposed by us and taking as a reference the VER results on the I2@(4He)100 doped nanodroplet (Vilà et al., Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2018, 20, 118, which corresponds to the first theoretical study on the VER of molecules embedded in a HeND). This has allowed us to obtain a deeper insight into the vibrational relaxation dynamics. The nanodroplet size has a very small effect on the VER, as this process mainly depends on the interaction between the molecule and the nanodroplet first solvation shell. Regarding the interaction potential energy and the energy gap, both factors play an important and comparable role in the VER time properties (global relaxation time, lifetime and transition time). As the former becomes stronger the relaxation time properties decrease in a significant way (their inverse follows a linear dependence with respect to the ν = 1 - ν = 0 coupling term) and they also decrease in a significant manner when the energy gap diminishes (linear dependence on the ν = 1 - ν = 0 energy difference). We expect that this study will motivate further work on the vibrational relaxation process in HeNDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miquel Blancafort-Jorquera
- Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física and IQTC, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Miguel González
- Departament de Ciència dels Materials i Química Física and IQTC, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
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Mitrushchenkov AO, Zanchet A, Hauser AW, de Lara-Castells MP. Nonadiabatic Effects in the Molecular Oxidation of Subnanometric Cu 5 Clusters. J Phys Chem A 2021; 125:9143-9150. [PMID: 34633823 PMCID: PMC8543446 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.1c07271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
![]()
The electronic structure
of subnanometric clusters, far off the
bulk regime, is still dominated by molecular characteristics. The
spatial arrangement of the notoriously undercoordinated metal atoms
is strongly coupled to the electronic properties of the system, which
makes this class of materials particularly interesting for applications
including luminescence, sensing, bioimaging, theranostics, energy
conversion, catalysis, and photocatalysis. Opposing a common rule
of thumb that assumes an increasing chemical reactivity with smaller
cluster size, Cu5 clusters have proven to be exceptionally
resistant to irreversible oxidation, i.e., the dissociative chemisorption
of molecular oxygen. Besides providing reasons for this behavior in
the case of heavy loading with molecular oxygen, we investigate the
competition between physisorption and molecular chemisorption from
the perspective of nonadiabatic effects. Landau–Zener theory
is applied to the Cu5(O2)3 complex
to estimate the probability for a switching between the electronic
states correlating the neutral O2 + Cu5(O2)2 and the ionic O2– + (Cu5(O2)2)+ fragments in a diabatic representation.
Our work demonstrates the involvement of strong nonadiabatic effects
in the associated charge transfer process, which might be a common
motive in reactions involving subnanometric metal structures.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alexandre Zanchet
- Instituto de Física Fundamental (AbinitSim Unit), CSIC, Serrano 123, 28006 Madrid, Spain
| | - Andreas W Hauser
- Institute of Experimental Physics, Graz University of Technology, Petersgasse 16, 8010 Graz, Austria
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A Path Integral Molecular Dynamics Simulation of a Harpoon-Type Redox Reaction in a Helium Nanodroplet. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26195783. [PMID: 34641327 PMCID: PMC8510490 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26195783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
We present path integral molecular dynamics (PIMD) calculations of an electron transfer from a heliophobic Cs2 dimer in its (3Σu) state, located on the surface of a He droplet, to a heliophilic, fully immersed C60 molecule. Supported by electron ionization mass spectroscopy measurements (Renzler et al., J. Chem. Phys.2016, 145, 181101), this spatially quenched reaction was characterized as a harpoon-type or long-range electron transfer in a previous high-level ab initio study (de Lara-Castells et al., J. Phys. Chem. Lett.2017, 8, 4284). To go beyond the static approach, classical and quantum PIMD simulations are performed at 2 K, slightly below the critical temperature for helium superfluidity (2.172 K). Calculations are executed in the NVT ensemble as well as the NVE ensemble to provide insights into real-time dynamics. A droplet size of 2090 atoms is assumed to study the impact of spatial hindrance on reactivity. By changing the number of beads in the PIMD simulations, the impact of quantization can be studied in greater detail and without an implicit assumption of superfluidity. We find that the reaction probability increases with higher levels of quantization. Our findings confirm earlier, static predictions of a rotational motion of the Cs2 dimer upon reacting with the fullerene, involving a substantial displacement of helium. However, it also raises the new question of whether the interacting species are driven out-of-equilibrium after impurity uptake, since reactivity is strongly quenched if a full thermal equilibration is assumed. More generally, our work points towards a novel mechanism for long-range electron transfer through an interplay between nuclear quantum delocalization within the confining medium and delocalized electronic dispersion forces acting on the two reactants.
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de Lara-Castells MP, Mitrushchenkov AO. A nuclear spin and spatial symmetry-adapted full quantum method for light particles inside carbon nanotubes: clusters of 3He, 4He, and para-H2. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:7908-7918. [DOI: 10.1039/d0cp05332e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
A new nuclear spin and spatial symmetry-adapted full quantum method for light fermionic and bosonic particles under cylindrical carbon nanotube confinement.
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de Lara-Castells MP, Mitrushchenkov AO. From Molecular Aggregation to a One-Dimensional Quantum Crystal of Deuterium Inside a Carbon Nanotube of 1 nm Diameter. J Phys Chem Lett 2020; 11:5081-5086. [PMID: 32513002 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.0c01432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The quantum motion of clusters of up to four deuterium molecules under confinement in a single-wall (1 nm diameter) carbon nanotube is investigated by applying a highly accurate full quantum treatment of the most relevant nuclear degrees of freedom and an ab initio-derived potential model of the underlying dispersion-dominated intermolecular interactions. The wave functions and energies are calculated using an ad hoc-developed discrete variable representation (DVR) numerical approach in internal coordinates, with the space grid approaching a few billion grid points. We unambiguously demonstrate the formation of a solid-like pyramidal one-dimensional chain structure of molecules under the cylindrical nanotube confinement. The onset of solid-like packing is explained by analyzing the potential minima landscape. The stabilization of collective rotational motion through "rigid rotations" of four deuterium molecules provides conclusive evidence for the onset of a quantum solid-like behavior resembling that of quantum rings featuring persistent current (charged particles) or persistent flow (neutral particles).
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11
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New tools for the astrochemist: Multi-scale computational modelling and helium droplet-based spectroscopy. Phys Life Rev 2020; 32:95-98. [DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2019.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2019] [Accepted: 08/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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12
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Zanchet A, López-Caballero P, Mitrushchenkov AO, Buceta D, López-Quintela MA, Hauser AW, Pilar de Lara-Castells M. On the Stability of Cu 5 Catalysts in Air Using Multireference Perturbation Theory. THE JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY. C, NANOMATERIALS AND INTERFACES 2019; 123:27064-27072. [PMID: 33101568 PMCID: PMC7575162 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.9b08378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 10/15/2019] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
An ab initio study of the interaction of O2, the most abundant radical and oxidant species in the atmosphere, with a Cu5 cluster, a new generation atomic metal catalyst, is presented. The open-shell nature of the reactant species is properly accounted for by using the multireference perturbation theory, allowing the experimentally confirmed resistivity of Cu5 clusters toward oxidation to be investigated. Approximate reaction pathways for the transition from physisorption to chemisorption are calculated for the interaction of O2 with quasi-iso-energetic trapezoidal planar and trigonal bipyramidal structures. Within the multireference approach, the transition barrier for O2 activation can be interpreted as an avoided crossing between adiabatic states (neutral and ionic), which provides new insights into the charge-transfer process and gives better estimates for this hard to localize and therefore often neglected first intermediate state. For Cu5 arranged in a bipyramidal structure, the O-O bond cleavage is confirmed as the rate-determining step. However, for planar Cu5, the high energy barrier for O2 activation, related to a very pronounced avoided crossing when going from physisorption to chemisorption, determines the reactivity in this case.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Zanchet
- Instituto
de Física Fundamental (AbinitSim Unit), CSIC, Serrano 123, 28006 Madrid, Spain
- Departamento
de Química Física, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
| | | | - Alexander O. Mitrushchenkov
- Laboratoire
Modélisationet Simulation Multi Echelle, Université Paris-Est, MSME UMR 8208, CNRS, UPEC, UPEM, 5 Bd Descartes, Champs-sur-Marne, F-77454 Marne la Vallée, France
| | - David Buceta
- Laboratory
of Nanotechnology and Magnetism, University
of Santiago de Compostela, E-15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Manuel Arturo López-Quintela
- Laboratory
of Nanotechnology and Magnetism, University
of Santiago de Compostela, E-15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Andreas W. Hauser
- Graz
University of Technology, Institute of Experimental
Physics, Petersgasse
16, 8010 Graz, Austria
- E-mail: (A.W.H.)
| | - María Pilar de Lara-Castells
- Instituto
de Física Fundamental (AbinitSim Unit), CSIC, Serrano 123, 28006 Madrid, Spain
- E-mail: . Phone: +34 915616800
(941026) (M.P.d.L.-C.)
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