Scientists Synthesize Atomically Precise AuAg Nanoclusters for Rotary Nanomotors
Metal nanoclusters, emerging as an atomically precise nanomaterial, exhibit unique physicochemical properties.
With the rapid advance in synthesis and characterization of clusters, more and more attention has been drawn to the application of metal clusters in various fields, such as photoluminescence, catalysis, medicine, biosensor, molecule machine.
Recently, a group led by Prof. LI GAO from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), in collaboration with Prof. WAN Chongqing from Capital Normal University and Prof. JIN Rongchao from Carnegie Mellon University, discovered the reversible conversion in metal nanoclusters driven by temperature for the first time, exploiting the application of metal clusters in the field of nanomotor.
This work was published in Nature Communication on November 26.
Nanocluster-based rotary nanomotor (Image by QIN Zhaoxian)
A strategy was provided to synthesize Au13Ag12 nanocluster in this study.
The scientists discovered a reversible conversion between isomers in Au13Ag12 nanoclusters composed of two icosahedrons by sharing an Au vertex. And the result was confirmed by mass spectroscopy (ESI-MS), ultra-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis), and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) analysis.
The discovery of reversible conversion in nanoclusters tailored by temperature may enrich the application of the scale-sized clusters.
This work was supported by Liaoning Natural Science Foundation of China, and Liaoning Revitalization Talents Program.
Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
457 Zhongshan Road, Dalian, 116023, China
Tel: 86-411-84374221
E-mail: wangyj@dicp.ac.cn
