Issue 17, 2022

Probing the presence and absence of metal-fullerene electron transfer reactions in helium nanodroplets by deflection measurements

Abstract

Metal-fullerene compounds are characterized by significant electron transfer to the fullerene cage, giving rise to an electric dipole moment. We use the method of electrostatic beam deflection to verify whether such reactions take place within superfluid helium nanodroplets between an embedded C60 molecule and either alkali (heliophobic) or rare-earth (heliophilic) atoms. The two cases lead to distinctly different outcomes: C60Nan (n = 1–4) display no discernable dipole moment, while C60Yb is strongly polar. This suggests that the fullerene and small alkali clusters fail to form a charge-transfer bond in the helium matrix despite their strong van der Waals attraction. The C60Yb dipole moment, on the other hand, is in agreement with the value expected for an ionic complex.

Graphical abstract: Probing the presence and absence of metal-fullerene electron transfer reactions in helium nanodroplets by deflection measurements

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 fev 2022
Accepted
12 apr 2022
First published
12 apr 2022

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2022,24, 10378-10383

Author version available

Probing the presence and absence of metal-fullerene electron transfer reactions in helium nanodroplets by deflection measurements

J. W. Niman, B. S. Kamerin, T. H. Villers, T. M. Linker, A. Nakano and V. V. Kresin, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2022, 24, 10378 DOI: 10.1039/D2CP00751G

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