Noble gas insertion compounds of hydrogenated and lithiated hyperhalogens

Abstract

Based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations, hydrogenated hyperhalogen HM(BO₂)₂, lithiated hyperhalogen LiM(BO₂)₂ (M = Cu, Ag, Au), and their compounds with xenon were studied. Different insertion sites of Xe resulted in various isomers. According to the natural population analysis, the Xe atom donated 0.12–0.77 electrons to HM(BO₂)₂ and 0.14–0.41 electrons to LiM(BO₂)₂ when they combined, leading to metastable charge-transfer compounds in most cases. The nature of bonding between xenon and HM(BO₂)₂/LiM(BO₂)₂ was found to be related to its location. Covalent bonds were formed when Xe bound with hydrogen atoms, as indicated by the large Wiberg bond indices of the Xe–H bonds. The same was true for most Xe–M bondings. When an Xe–O connection was formed, it was either an ionic or van der Waals force in nature depending on the specific structural feature of the isomer. A parallel study on hyperhalogen-supported Ar and Kr compounds indicated that they were not very stable and were less likely to exist at room temperature, which was in accordance with the high inertness of both Ar and Kr atoms.