金原子簇催化应用的研究进展

在最近的10年里,原子精确的金原子簇(AunLm,L为有机配体)已经被证明是一种新型的纳米金催化剂.不同尺寸的AunLm催化剂表现出独特的电子和晶体结构,为关联催化性能和催化剂结构的内在关系及研究纳米金催化的化学反应机制提供了新的研究平台.在这篇综述中,主要介绍金原子簇催化剂在催化反应中的应用,如选择性氧化和加氢,及C—C偶联反应等,同时,也讨论金原子簇催化剂的尺寸效应、配体效应(例如,芳香族vs脂肪族)、杂金属掺杂(如铜、银、钯、铂)等.最后,在原子尺度上研究了金原子簇催化的反应机制以及结构-活性的构建关系.     

A nanometre-scale electronic switch consisting of a metal cluster and redox-addressable groups

So-called bottom-up fabrication methods aim to assemble and integrate molecular components exhibiting specific functions into electronic devices that are orders of magnitude smaller than can be fabricated by lithographic techniques. Fundamental to the success of the bottom-up approach is the ability to control electron transport across molecular components. Organic molecules containing redox centres-chemical species whose oxidation number, and hence electronic structure, can be changed reversibly-support resonant tunnelling and display promising functional behaviour when sandwiched as molecular layers between electrical contacts, but their integration into more complex assemblies remains challenging. For this reason, functionalized metal nanoparticles have attracted much interest: they exhibit single-electron characteristics (such as quantized capacitance charging) and can be organized through simple self-assembly methods into well ordered structures, with the nanoparticles at controlled locations. Here we report scanning tunnelling microscopy measurements showing that organic molecules containing redox centres can be used to attach metal nanoparticles to electrode surfaces and so control the electron transport between them. Our system consists of gold nanoclusters a few nanometres across and functionalized with polymethylene chains that carry a central, reversibly reducible bipyridinium moiety. We expect that the ability to electronically contact metal nanoparticles via redox-active molecules, and to alter profoundly their tunnelling properties by charge injection into these molecules, can form the basis for a range of nanoscale electronic switches.     

DNA-guided crystallization of colloidal nanoparticles

Many nanometre-sized building blocks will readily assemble into macroscopic structures. If the process is accompanied by effective control over the interactions between the blocks and all entropic effects, then the resultant structures will be ordered with a precision hard to achieve with other fabrication methods. But it remains challenging to use self-assembly to design systems comprised of different types of building blocks-to realize novel magnetic, plasmonic and photonic metamaterials, for example. A conceptually simple idea for overcoming this problem is the use of 'encodable' interactions between building blocks; this can in principle be straightforwardly implemented using biomolecules. Strategies that use DNA programmability to control the placement of nanoparticles in one and two dimensions have indeed been demonstrated. However, our theoretical understanding of how to extend this approach to three dimensions is limited, and most experiments have yielded amorphous aggregates and only occasionally crystallites of close-packed micrometre-sized particles. Here, we report the formation of three-dimensional crystalline assemblies of gold nanoparticles mediated by interactions between complementary DNA molecules attached to the nanoparticles' surface. We find that the nanoparticle crystals form reversibly during heating and cooling cycles. Moreover, the body-centred-cubic lattice structure is temperature-tuneable and structurally open, with particles occupying only approximately 4% of the unit cell volume. We expect that our DNA-mediated crystallization approach, and the insight into DNA design requirements it has provided, will facilitate both the creation of new classes of ordered multicomponent metamaterials and the exploration of the phase behaviour of hybrid systems with addressable interactions.     

Three-dimensional atomic imaging of crystalline nanoparticles

Determining the three-dimensional (3D) arrangement of atoms in crystalline nanoparticles is important for nanometre-scale device engineering and also for applications involving nanoparticles, such as optoelectronics or catalysis. A nanoparticle's physical and chemical properties are controlled by its exact 3D morphology, structure and composition. Electron tomography enables the recovery of the shape of a nanoparticle from a series of projection images. Although atomic-resolution electron microscopy has been feasible for nearly four decades, neither electron tomography nor any other experimental technique has yet demonstrated atomic resolution in three dimensions. Here we report the 3D reconstruction of a complex crystalline nanoparticle at atomic resolution. To achieve this, we combined aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, statistical parameter estimation theory and discrete tomography. Unlike conventional electron tomography, only two images of the target--a silver nanoparticle embedded in an aluminium matrix--are sufficient for the reconstruction when combined with available knowledge about the particle's crystallographic structure. Additional projections confirm the reliability of the result. The results we present help close the gap between the atomic resolution achievable in two-dimensional electron micrographs and the coarser resolution that has hitherto been obtained by conventional electron tomography.     

Structural effects on the magnetic hyperthermia properties of iron oxide nanoparticles

Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles(IONPs) are heavily explored as diagnostic and therapeutic agents due to their low cost, tunable properties, and biocompatibility. In particular, upon excitation with an alternating current(AC) magnetic field, the NPs generate localized heat that can be exploited for therapeutic hyperthermia treatment of diseased cells or pathogenic microbes. In this review, we focus on how structural changes and inter-particle interactions affect the heating efficiency of iron oxide-based magnetic NPs. Moreover, we present an overview of the different approaches to evaluate the heating performance of IONPs and introduce a new theranostic modality based on magnetic imaging guided–hyperthermia.     

Chiral ligand-protected gold nanoclusters: Considering the optical activity from a viewpoint of ligand dissymmetric field

Chirality is a geometric property of a physical, chemical, or biological object, which is not superimposable on its mirror image. Its significant presence has led to a strong demand in the development of chiral drugs, sensors, catalysts, and photofunctional materials. In recent years, chirality of nanoscale organic/inorganic hybrids has received tremendous attention owing to potential applications in chiral nanotechnology. In particular, with the recent progress in the syntheses and characterizations of atomically precise gold nanoclusters protected by achiral thiolates, atomic level origins of their chirality have been unveiled. On the other hand, chirality or optical activity in metal nanoclusters can also be introduced via the surface chiral ligands, which should be universal for the nanosystems. This tutorial review presents some optically-active metal (gold) nanoclusters protected by chiral thiolates or phosphines, and their chiroptical (or circular dichroism; CD) properties are discussed mostly from a viewpoint of the ligand dissymmetric field scheme. The examples are the gold nanoclusters protected by (R)-/(S)-2-phenylpropane-1-thiol, (R)-/(S)-mercaptosuccinic acid, phenylboronate-D/L-fructose complexes, phosphine sulfonate-ephedrinium ion pairs, or glutathione. Some methodologies for versatile asymmetric transformation and chiroptical controls of the nanocluster compounds are also described. In the dissymmetric field model as the origin of optical activity, the chiroptical responses of the gold nanoclusters are strongly associated with coupled oscillator and/or CD stealing mechanisms based on the concept of induced CD (ICD) derived from a perturbation theory, so on this basis, some characteristic features of the observed CD responses of chiral ligand-protected gold nanoclusters are presented in detail. We believe that various kinds of origins of chirality found in ligand-protected gold nanoclusters may provide models for understanding those of many related nanomaterials.     

Electron tomography at 2.4-ångström resolution

Transmission electron microscopy is a powerful imaging tool that has found broad application in materials science, nanoscience and biology. With the introduction of aberration-corrected electron lenses, both the spatial resolution and the image quality in transmission electron microscopy have been significantly improved and resolution below 0.5??ngstr?ms has been demonstrated. To reveal the three-dimensional (3D) structure of thin samples, electron tomography is the method of choice, with cubic-nanometre resolution currently achievable. Discrete tomography has recently been used to generate a 3D atomic reconstruction of a silver nanoparticle two to three nanometres in diameter, but this statistical method assumes prior knowledge of the particle's lattice structure and requires that the atoms fit rigidly on that lattice. Here we report the experimental demonstration of a general electron tomography method that achieves atomic-scale resolution without initial assumptions about the sample structure. By combining a novel projection alignment and tomographic reconstruction method with scanning transmission electron microscopy, we have determined the 3D structure of an approximately ten-nanometre gold nanoparticle at 2.4-?ngstr?m resolution. Although we cannot definitively locate all of the atoms inside the nanoparticle, individual atoms are observed in some regions of the particle and several grains are identified in three dimensions. The 3D surface morphology and internal lattice structure revealed are consistent with a distorted icosahedral multiply twinned particle. We anticipate that this general method can be applied not only to determine the 3D structure of nanomaterials at atomic-scale resolution, but also to improve the spatial resolution and image quality in other tomography fields.     

Selective oxidation with dioxygen by gold nanoparticle catalysts derived from 55-atom clusters

Supported gold nanoparticles have excited much interest owing to their unusual and somewhat unexpected catalytic properties, but the origin of the catalytic activity is still not fully understood. Experimental work on gold particles supported on a titanium dioxide (110) single-crystal surface has established a striking size threshold effect associated with a metal-to-insulator transition, with gold particles catalytically active only if their diameters fall below approximately 3.5 nm. However, the remarkable catalytic behaviour might also in part arise from strong electronic interaction between the gold and the titanium dioxide support. In the case of industrially important selective oxidation reactions, explanation of the effectiveness of gold nanoparticle catalysts is complicated by the need for additives to drive the reaction, and/or the presence of strong support interactions and incomplete understanding of their possible catalytic role. Here we show that very small gold entities ( approximately 1.4 nm) derived from 55-atom gold clusters and supported on inert materials are efficient and robust catalysts for the selective oxidation of styrene by dioxygen. We find a sharp size threshold in catalytic activity, in that particles with diameters of approximately 2 nm and above are completely inactive. Our observations suggest that catalytic activity arises from the altered electronic structure intrinsic to small gold nanoparticles, and that the use of 55-atom gold clusters may prove a viable route to the synthesis of robust gold catalysts suited to practical application.     

精确尺寸巯基保护贵金属纳米团簇的合成进展

金属纳米团簇作为凝聚态物质的初始形态之一,在金属原子/分子化合物向金属纳米颗粒形成的过程中起着桥梁作用.因其具有量子局限效应,团簇往往表现出特异的光学、催化等性质.近几十年来的研究发现,单个原子的改变会对团簇的几何结构以及电子结构产生显著的影响.同时,精确的结构可以有效地建立结构与性质之间的关系.因此,合成具有精确结构的纳米团簇在近年来受到广泛关注.笔者对巯基保护精确结构金属纳米团簇合成方法的建立以及发展进行了综述.     

Carbon-free nanoporous gold based membrane electrocatalysts for fuel cells

Nanoporous gold (NPG) membranes made by dealloying consist of a bicontinuous network of Au ligaments and open pore channels, which have gained considerable attention as a platform for the design of carbon-free electrodes for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Benefiting from a unique combination of high electronic conductivity, high surface area, and modifiable surface chemistry, these self-supporting membrane type electrodes allow integration of various structural functions required for specific electrode reactions and simultaneously facilitate the entire fuel cell kinetic process. In this review, we summarize the major research progresses in this area, with an emphasis on how to customize the surface structures of these three-dimensional electrocatalysts for desired fuel molecule oxidation and oxidant reduction. We will also discuss these designed structural characteristics that can be readily accommodated in membrane electrode assemblies (MEA), thus effectively bridging the technological gap between electrocatalysts’ intrinsic activities and their actual performances in fuel cells.     

Atom-by-atom spectroscopy at graphene edge

The properties of many nanoscale devices are sensitive to local atomic configurations, and so elemental identification and electronic state analysis at the scale of individual atoms is becoming increasingly important. For example, graphene is regarded as a promising candidate for future devices, and the electronic properties of nanodevices constructed from this material are in large part governed by the edge structures. The atomic configurations at graphene boundaries have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy and scanning tunnelling microscopy, but the electronic properties of these edge states have not yet been determined with atomic resolution. Whereas simple elemental analysis at the level of single atoms can now be achieved by means of annular dark field imaging or electron energy-loss spectroscopy, obtaining fine-structure spectroscopic information about individual light atoms such as those of carbon has been hampered by a combination of extremely weak signals and specimen damage by the electron beam. Here we overcome these difficulties to demonstrate site-specific single-atom spectroscopy at a graphene boundary, enabling direct investigation of the electronic and bonding structures of the edge atoms-in particular, discrimination of single-, double- and triple-coordinated carbon atoms is achieved with atomic resolution. By demonstrating how rich chemical information can be obtained from single atoms through energy-loss near-edge fine-structure analysis, our results should open the way to exploring the local electronic structures of various nanodevices and individual molecules.     

金属纳米团簇在电化学领域的应用研究进展

尺寸小于2nm的金属纳米团簇是由几个到几百个原子组成的纳米结构材料.对于金属纳米团簇,由于其大部分甚至所有金属原子可能暴露于表面而具有高的表面原子比例,该独特的原子堆积结构使其具有高的表面活性,因此其在催化反应中具有重要应用价值.同时,其明确的原子排列和堆积结构使其可作为模型催化剂,用于研究纳米结构-性能之间的关系.笔者简要总结了近年来金属纳米团簇的研究进展和现状,重点总结了其在电化学领域的应用,包括电催化和电化学传感,最后对其未来在电催化和电分析领域的应用前景进行了展望.     

金纳米颗粒修饰的固定化葡萄糖氧化酶酶膜制备

分别利用柠檬酸钠和NaBH4作为还原剂、以PVP作为包覆剂制备不同类型、不同包覆情况的金纳米粒子,并用紫外可见分光光谱仪、透射电微镜等手段对制备的金纳米粒子的粒径、形貌和分散性进行表征。用金纳米粒子对葡萄糖氧化酶膜进行修饰,并在SBA生物传感分析仪上进行感应测量。研究结果表明,粒径小、分散性好的球状金纳米粒子可以极大地提高葡萄糖酶膜的灵敏度。     

Theoretical advances of the structures and catalytic activities of small-sized gold nanoclusters

Gold nanoclusters exhibit extraordinary catalytic activities,but the dominating factor is still unclear due to the complexity of the structures.In this review,we briefly summarized the recent theoretical progress on their structures and catalytic activities.Combining the experimental and theoretical efforts,the structures of small-sized gold clusters have been explored systematically.Based on the determined structures,factors that influence the catalytic capabilities of small-sized gold clusters(Au_(16)-Au_(35))are studied using CO oxidation asa probe.The preadsorption energies of CO and O_2are found strongly correlated with catalytic activities,which could be affected by the clusters'geometries,sizes,and charge distributions.In addition,the presence of water could significantly lower the activation energy barrier of O_2 dissociation to enhance the clusters'catalytic activities.     

DNA 稳定的银纳米簇用于检测端粒酶活性研究

摘要: 目的 建立利用 DNA 稳定的银纳米簇检测端粒酶活性的方法。方法 利用合成的寡核苷酸序列能稳定银纳米的特点,在强还原剂硼氢化钠存在下还原银离子得到具有良好荧光特性的银纳米簇。结果 利用端粒酶活性能够延伸 5' － ( TTAGGG) n － 3'的特性,以及含有 G 碱基的 DNA 序列靠近银纳米簇合成模板时,合成的银纳米簇的荧光明显提升特性建立端粒酶活性检测的方法。结论 合成了以寡核苷酸为模板的银纳米簇并对其荧光特性进行表征,建立了 DNA 稳定的银纳米簇用于检测端粒酶活性的方法。     

Atom-resolved imaging of ordered defect superstructures at individual grain boundaries

The ability to resolve spatially and identify chemically atoms in defects would greatly advance our understanding of the correlation between structure and property in materials. This is particularly important in polycrystalline materials, in which the grain boundaries have profound implications for the properties and applications of the final material. However, such atomic resolution is still extremely difficult to achieve, partly because grain boundaries are effective sinks for atomic defects and impurities, which may drive structural transformation of grain boundaries and consequently modify material properties. Regardless of the origin of these sinks, the interplay between defects and grain boundaries complicates our efforts to pinpoint the exact sites and chemistries of the entities present in the defective regions, thereby limiting our understanding of how specific defects mediate property changes. Here we show that the combination of advanced electron microscopy, spectroscopy and first-principles calculations can provide three-dimensional images of complex, multicomponent grain boundaries with both atomic resolution and chemical sensitivity. The high resolution of these techniques allows us to demonstrate that even for magnesium oxide, which has a simple rock-salt structure, grain boundaries can accommodate complex ordered defect superstructures that induce significant electron trapping in the bandgap of the oxide. These results offer insights into interactions between defects and grain boundaries in ceramics and demonstrate that atomic-scale analysis of complex multicomponent structures in materials is now becoming possible.     

高分辨率电子能量损失谱在半导体表面研究中的应用

低能电子与半导体表面的相互作用能激发带间电子跃迁和（或）表面振动,因而对背散射电子能量分布的高分辨率测量可望给出与这些激发相关的丰富信息,近年来的实验研究证实,进行这样的电子能量损失测量确能从各种不同半导体得到的诸发禁带宽度,表面电子态的能量,表面光学声子的特性,表面原子的成键方式,表面反应的产物等许多有关表面原子和电子结构的重要参数。     

Synthesis and size control of gold nanoparticles in regular system of amphiphilic molecules

Two synthetic techniques for colloidal gold particles was improved by using SDS. And colloidal Au particles of mean diameters between 5 and 14 nm are synthesized, that exhibit improved monodispersity relative to previously published methods. According to the particular molecular structure of surfactants and different electrons distribution arising from colloidal small sizes and high surface/ volume ratios, it is found that there are a complex between SDS and Au³⁺ (and Au atoms ) during synthesizing colloidal gold nanoparticles and as a stablizer for Au particles, SDS can prevent their further growth. So the colloidal gold particles is monodispersize and more steady. But other surfactants don't affect the process of synthesizing gold nanoparticles because of their structures and properties different from SDS. Gold nanoparticles have considerable bioaffinity and can be applied to study the adsorption of proteins or polypeptides.     

Determination of surface topography of biological specimens at high resolution by scanning tunnelling microscopy

Although techniques are available for the determination of the three-dimensional structure of biological specimens, for example scanning electron microscopy, they all have some serious drawback, such as low resolution, the requirement for crystals or for the sample to be analysed in a high vacuum. In an attempt to develop a technique for high-resolution three-dimensional structure analysis of non-crystalline biological material, we have tested the applicability of scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM), a method that has been used successfully in the analysis of metal and semiconductor surface structures. We report here that scanning tunnelling electron microscopy can be used to determine the surface topography of biological specimens at atmospheric pressure and room temperature, giving a vertical resolution of the order of 1 A. Our results show that quantum mechanical tunnelling of electrons through biological material is possible provided that the specimen is deposited on a conducting surface.     

Experimental measurements and theoretical calculations of the atomic structure of materials with subangstrom resolution and picometer precision

Lattice defects are unavoidable structural units in materials and play an important role in determining material properties. Compared with the periodic structure of crystals, the atomic configurations of the lattice defects are determined by the coordinates of a large number of atoms, making it difficult to experimentally investigate them. In computational materials science, multiparameter optimization is also a difficult problem and experimental verification is usually required to determine the possibility of obtaining the structure and properties predicted by cal- culations. Using our recent studies on oxide surfaces as examples, we introduce the method of integrated aberra- tion-corrected electron microscopy and the first-principles calculations to analyze the atomic structure of lattice defects. The atomic configurations of defects were mea- sured using quantitative high-resolution electron micros- copy at subangstrom resolution and picometer precision, and then the electronic structure and dynamic behavior of materials can be studied at the atomic scale using the first- principles calculations. The two methods complement each other and can be combined to increase the understanding of the atomic structure of materials in both the time and space dimensions, which will benefit materials design at the atomic scale.