Structural properties and reactivity of bimetallic silver-gold clusters

Abstract

Bimetallic silver-gold clusters are well suited to study changes in metallic versus “ionic” properties involving charge transfer as a function of the size and the composition. We present structures, ionization potentials (IP) and vertical detachment energies (VDE) for neutral and charged bimetallic AunAgm ( 2≤(n + m)≤5) clusters obtained from density functional level of theory. In the stable structures of these clusters Au atoms assume positions which favor charge transfer from Ag atoms. In clusters with equal numbers of hetero atoms (n = m = 1- 4) heteronuclear bonding is preferred to homonuclear bonding, giving rise to large values of ionization potentials. For larger clusters (n=m=5, 10) stable structures do not favor neither hetero bonding nor segregation into the single components, although they exhibit more metallic than ionic features. This remains valid also for Au8Ag12 cluster characterized by strong charge transfer to gold subunit. The influence of doping of pure gold clusters with silver atoms on VDE and IP values is discussed in context of their reactivity towards O2 and CO molecules. As a starting point we consider reactivity towards CO and O2 molecules on the example of AgAu- dimer. The results show that the catalytic cycle can be fullfilled.