Size-dependent fivefold and icosahedral symmetry in silver clusters

Journal Article · Mon Aug 15 00:00:00 EDT 2005 · Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.72.081405· OSTI ID:20719348

Xiaopeng, Xing; Danell, Ryan M; Burns, Michael M; Parks, Joel H ^[1]; Garzon, Ignacio L; Michaelian, Karo ^[2]; Blom, Martine N ^[3]

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1. Rowland Institute at Harvard, 100 Edwin H. Land Boulevard, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142 (United States)
2. Instituto de Fisica, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, A.P. 20-364, 01000 Mexico, DF (Mexico)
3. Institut fuer Nanotechnologie, Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Postfach 3640, 76021 Karlsruhe (Germany)

Trapped ion electron diffraction measurements on silver cluster cations, Ag{sub n}{sup +} for sizes n=36-46,55 at {approx}120 K describe an evolution in structural symmetry with increasing cluster size. Diffraction patterns characterize fivefold symmetry at smaller sizes which evolves to icosahedral symmetry at n=55. Low energy isomer structures were identified by statistical search methods and optimized by density-functional calculations. Comparison of diffraction data with these theoretical structures confirms the presence of local order having fivefold symmetry for sizes n=36-39,43 and global order having icosahedral symmetry at the closed shell size n=55.

• OSTI ID: 20719348
• Journal Information: Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, Journal Name: Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics Journal Issue: 8 Vol. 72; ISSN 1098-0121
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
CATIONS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DENSITY FUNCTIONAL METHOD
ELECTRON DIFFRACTION
EVOLUTION
ISOMERS
SILVER
SOLID CLUSTERS
SYMMETRY
TRAPPING