Au 133 (SPh - t Bu) 52 Nanomolecules: X-ray Crystallography, Optical, Electrochemical, and Theoretical Analysis

Journal Article · Wed Apr 15 04:00:00 EDT 2015 · Journal of the American Chemical Society

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/ja513152h· OSTI ID:1239605

Dass, Amala; Theivendran, Shevanuja; Nimmala, Praneeth Reddy; Kumara, Chanaka; Jupally, Vijay Reddy; Fortunelli, Alessandro; Sementa, Luca; Barcaro, Giovanni; Zuo, Xiaobing; Noll, Bruce C.

Crystal structure determination has revolutionized modern science in biology, chemistry, and physics. However, the difficulty in obtaining periodic crystal lattices which are needed for X-ray crystal analysis has hindered the determination of atomic structure in nanomaterials, known as the "nanostructure problem". Here, by using rigid and bulky ligands, we have overcome this limitation and successfully solved the X-ray crystallographic structure of the largest reported thiolated gold nanomolecule, Au133S52. The total composition, Au-133(SPh-tBu)(52), was verified using high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). The experimental and simulated optical spectra show an emergent surface plasmon resonance that is more pronounced than in the slightly larger Au-144(SCH2CH2Ph)(60). Theoretical analysis indicates that the presence of rigid and bulky ligands is the key to the successful crystal formation.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science - Office of Basic Energy Sciences
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-06CH11357
• OSTI ID: 1239605
• Journal Information: Journal of the American Chemical Society, Journal Name: Journal of the American Chemical Society Journal Issue: 14 Vol. 137; ISSN 0002-7863
• Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English