Stability of cationic silver doped gold clusters and the subshell-closed electronic configuration of AgAu14. J Chem Phys 2020;153:244304. [PMID: 33380086 DOI: 10.1063/5.0033487]

The global minimum of Ag30: a prolate spheroidal structure predicted using a genetic algorithm with incomplete local optimizations at the DFT level

Genetic algorithms have been widely used to explore global minimum points of atomic clusters, and their incorporation with ab initio calculations (including density functional theory methods) as local optimization approaches increases their ability to accurately locate the global minimum points on complicated potential energy surfaces. However, the local optimizations using ab initio calculations significantly increase the computational cost relative to those based on empirical or semi-empirical calculations. Herein, we develop a genetic algorithm program with an incomplete local optimization strategy at the DFT level. Using several representative clusters as test examples, this program showed high efficiency in locating their global minimum points. The low-lying isomers of Ag₃₀ were explored using this program, and the determined global minimum is a prolate spheroidal structure. The elongated spheroidal shape causes degeneracy lifting of the free electron shells, and endows Ag₃₀ with a large HOMO-LUMO gap. The sharp increase of silver clusters' reactivity around the sizes with 30 valence electrons observed in our previous experiments could be correlated with this theoretical figure.

Radiative cooling in silver and palladium doped gold clusters

The emission of photons from a thermally populated electronic excited state, via the process of recurrent fluorescence, has been recognized as a prominent cooling channel in hot molecules and small metal clusters. For the latter case, however, only monometallic species have been investigated to date. An active radiative cooling channel has a stabilizing effect and can favor the size and composition specific production of selected clusters. In this work, the influence of silver and palladium doping on the radiative cooling of gold cluster cations is studied. The quenching of metastable fragmentation due to radiation of laser-excited Au_n⁺, AgAu_n-1⁺ and PdAu_n-1⁺ (n = 11-15) clusters is investigated in a single-pass molecular beam setup. The observed high radiation rates, with values in the range from 10³ to 10⁵ s^-1, are consistent with recurrent fluorescence. The rates present a pronounced odd-even staggering with higher values for the clusters with closed-shell electronic configurations. While substitution of Au with Ag does not alter the odd-even pattern with cluster size, replacing Au with Pd shifts the pattern by one atom. The experimental observations are discussed in terms of the dissociation energy of the clusters, which sets their effective temperature during photon emission, and the low-lying electronic excited states involved in the photon emission process. Linear-response time-dependent density functional theory calculations on selected species are used to illustrate the significant effect of the electronic structure on the radiation rates. For n = 14, substitution of Au with Ag lowers the energy of the lowest-energy transition in the cluster, which in addition has a higher oscillator strength, favoring radiative cooling. The opposite effect is seen in Pd doped clusters. Based on this analysis, conclusions can be drawn about the significance of radiative cooling in laser-excited alloy clusters, with a concomitant fast stabilization at high internal energy conditions.

The size-dependent influence of palladium doping on the structures of cationic gold clusters

The physicochemical properties of small metal clusters strongly depend on their precise geometry. Determining such geometries, however, is challenging, particularly for clusters formed by multiple elements. In this work, we combine infrared multiple photon dissociation spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations to investigate the lowest-energy structures of Pd doped gold clusters, PdAu n-1 + (n ≤ 10). The high-quality experimental spectra allow for an unambiguous determination of the structures adopted by the clusters. Our results show that the Pd-Au interaction is so large that the structures of PdAu n-1 + and Au n + are very different. Pd doping induces a 2D to 3D transition at much smaller cluster sizes than for pure Au n + clusters. PdAu n-1 + clusters are three-dimensional from n = 4, whereas for Au n + this transition only takes place at n = 7. Despite the strong Au-Pd interaction, the Au n-1 + cluster geometries remain recognizable in PdAu n-1 + up to n = 7. This is particularly clear for PdAu6 +. In PdAu8 + and PdAu9 +, Pd triggers major rearrangements of the Au clusters, which adopt pyramidal shapes. For PdAu4 + we find a geometry that was not considered in previous studies, and the geometry found for PdAu8 + does not correspond to the lowest-energy structure predicted by DFT, suggesting kinetic trapping during formation. This work demonstrates that even with the continuous improvement of computational methods, unambiguous assignment of cluster geometries still requires a synergistic approach, combining experiment and computational modelling.

Argon Adsorption on Cationic Gold Clusters Aun+ (n ≤ 20)

The interaction of Au_n⁺ (n ≤ 20) clusters with Ar is investigated by combining mass spectrometric experiments and density functional theory calculations. We show that the inert Ar atom forms relatively strong bonds with Au_n⁺. The strength of the bond strongly varies with the cluster size and is governed by a fine interplay between geometry and electronic structure. The chemical bond between Au_n⁺ and Ar involves electron transfer from Ar to Au, and a stronger interaction is found when the Au adsorption site has a higher positive partial charge, which depends on the cluster geometry. Au₁₅⁺ is a peculiar cluster size, which stands out for its much stronger interaction with Ar than its neighbors, signaled by a higher abundance in mass spectra and a larger Ar adsorption energy. This is shown to be a consequence of a low-coordinated Au adsorption site in Au₁₅⁺, which possesses a large positive partial charge.