Chemical Reactivity and Electronic Structure of Silicon Microclusters

Abstract

Publisher Summary Small semiconductor clusters are of great interest both to fundamental science and for applications. At present, however, both the basic properties and the kinetics behind the cluster formation are largely unknown. In supersonic beams, where silicon (Si) clusters can be grown, the random-like kinetics of Si atoms is suitable for growing both small and large clusters with various structures. However, experiments on these clusters show clear patterns, similar to periodicity in the reactivity and a photofragmentation pattern that indicate underlying structure. This obviously reflects the patterns in the conformation of the clusters with growing size. This chapter discusses properties of small and medium-sized Si clusters from a theoretical perspective, including the structure, reactivity, and photofragmentation of Si clusters.