The goal of this study is to use the unique electrochemical properties of gold bi-icosahedron nanoclusters and synthesize mixed metal alloys in order to increase the fluorescence of superatom clusters of gold. Alloys are useful and important for applications, as they improve the properties of the homogeneous gold clusters by modifying the electronic structure as a result of doping the parent cluster. Creating alloys modifies the electronic structure as well as the surface composition of the parent cluster. Mixed metal clusters can be synthesized by first making the gold nanoclusters and then reacting them with metal salts or metal thiolate complexes or by altering the synthesis process for the clusters to include the metal ions. The focus of this research is to synthesize and characterize cadmium (Cd) and mercury (Hg) mixed clusters and quantify the effects doping has on the parent cluster’s fluorescence quantum yield for the first time. The parent clusters are bi-icosahedron gold nanoclusters that have a bridged structure with two cores as opposed to the single core structure of icosahedron clusters. Gold nanoclusters serve in the field of nanoengineering for light harvesting applications. Increasing the fluorescence of the clusters can improve this function for applications such as two-photon sensing. So far, previous work in the field has provided a 200-fold increase with the icosahedral structure and I am looking to push this improvement further with my research on the bi-icosahedral structure.

Bimetallic superatom bi-icosahedron Au25 clusters: An optical and electrochemical study

Fall 2022 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch in mid-September.

ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.