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Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics

High quality research in physical chemistry, chemical physics and biophysical chemistry.




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Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2006, 8, 63 - 67, DOI: 10.1039/b511563a


The chiroptical signature of achiral metal clusters induced by dissymmetric adsorbates

Michael-Rock Goldsmith, Christopher B. George, Gérard Zuber, Ron Naaman, David H. Waldeck, Peter Wipf and David N. Beratan


Using a dissymmetrically-perturbed particle-in-a-box model, we demonstrate that the induced optical activity of chiral monolayer protected clusters, such as Whettens Au28(SG)16 glutathione-passivated gold nanoclusters (J. Phys. Chem. B, 2000, 104, 2630–2641), could arise from symmetric metal cores perturbed by a dissymmetric or chiral field originating from the adsorbates. This finding implies that the electronic states of the nanocluster core are chiral, yet the lattice geometries of these cores need not be geometrically distorted by the chiral adsorbates. Based on simple chiral monolayer protected cluster models, we rationalize how the adsorption pattern of the tethering sulfur atoms has a substantial effect on the induced CD in the NIR spectral region, and we show how the chiral image charge produced in the core provides a convenient means of visualizing dissymmetric perturbations to the achiral gold nanocluster core.

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