On the Electronic and Structural Properties of Small Clusters

Abstract

A large interest has developed during the last five years on the physics and chemistry of small atomic aggregates in the size range of 2–100 atoms [1]. This was due to the advent of the laser vaporization technique to produce microclusters of a large variety of materials and to the advance in the direct experimental investigation of size-selected clusters in the gas phase [2]. The progress in cluster physics has provided new clues to surface science, especially in relation with research in catalysis and microelectronics. The study of the clusters in beam has also renewed the hope of obtaining better insight into fundamental questions, such as the evolution of the electronic and structural properties of a material with increasing size of the atomic aggregate, from the molecule to the solid.