Department of Chemistry and Center for Atomic Engineering of Advanced Materials, Institute of Physical Science and Information Technology and AnHui Province Key Laboratory of Chemistry for Inorganic/Organic Hybrid Functionalized Materials, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, P. R. China.
Nanoscale. 2018 Jun 14;10(23):10758-10834. doi: 10.1039/c8nr02973c.
Noble metal nanoclusters are in the intermediate state between discrete atoms and plasmonic nanoparticles and are of significance due to their atomically accurate structures, intriguing properties, and great potential for applications in various fields. In addition, the size-dependent properties of nanoclusters construct a platform for thoroughly researching the structure (composition)-property correlations, which is favorable for obtaining novel nanomaterials with enhanced physicochemical properties. Thus far, more than 100 species of nanoclusters (mono-metallic Au or Ag nanoclusters, and bi- or tri-metallic alloy nanoclusters) with crystal structures have been reported. Among these nanoclusters, Au25(SR)18-the brightest molecular star in the nanocluster field-is capable of revealing the past developments and prospecting the future of the nanoclusters. Since being successfully synthesized (in 1998, with a 20-year history) and structurally determined (in 2008, with a 10-year history), Au25(SR)18 has stimulated the interest of chemists as well as material scientists, due to the early discovery, easy preparation, high stability, and easy functionalization and application of this molecular star. In this review, the preparation methods, crystal structures, physicochemical properties, and practical applications of Au25(SR)18 are summarized. The properties of Au25(SR)18 range from optics and chirality to magnetism and electrochemistry, and the property-oriented applications include catalysis, chemical imaging, sensing, biological labeling, biomedicine and beyond. Furthermore, the research progress on the Ag-based M25(SR)18 counterpart (i.e., Ag25(SR)18) is included in this review due to its homologous composition, construction and optical absorption to its gold-counterpart Au25(SR)18. Moreover, the alloying methods, metal-exchange sites and property alternations based on the templated Au25(SR)18 are highlighted. Finally, some perspectives and challenges for the future research of the Au25(SR)18 nanocluster are proposed (also holding true for all members in the nanocluster field). This review is directed toward the broader scientific community interested in the metal nanocluster field, and hopefully opens up new horizons for scientists studying nanomaterials. This review is based on the publications available up to March 2018.
贵金属纳米团簇处于离散原子和等离子体纳米粒子之间的中间状态，由于其原子精确的结构、有趣的性质以及在各个领域应用的巨大潜力而具有重要意义。此外，纳米团簇的尺寸依赖性性质为彻底研究结构（组成）-性质相关性构建了一个平台，有利于获得具有增强物理化学性质的新型纳米材料。迄今为止，已经报道了超过 100 种具有晶体结构的纳米团簇（单核金或银纳米团簇，以及双金属或三金属合金纳米团簇）。在这些纳米团簇中，Au25(SR)18——纳米团簇领域中最亮的分子星，能够揭示过去的发展，并展望纳米团簇的未来。自从 1998 年成功合成（有 20 年的历史）和 2008 年结构确定（有 10 年的历史）以来，Au25(SR)18 激发了化学家以及材料科学家的兴趣，因为这种分子星具有早期发现、易于制备、高稳定性以及易于功能化和应用的特点。在这篇综述中，总结了 Au25(SR)18 的制备方法、晶体结构、物理化学性质和实际应用。Au25(SR)18 的性质从光学和手性到磁性和电化学都有涉及，面向性质的应用包括催化、化学成像、传感、生物标记、生物医学等。此外，由于其同源组成、结构和对其金对应物 Au25(SR)18 的光学吸收，本文还包括了基于 Ag 的 M25(SR)18 对应物（即 Ag25(SR)18）的研究进展。此外，还重点介绍了基于模板 Au25(SR)18 的合金化方法、金属交换位和性质变化。最后，对 Au25(SR)18 纳米团簇的未来研究提出了一些观点和挑战（对纳米团簇领域的所有成员也同样适用）。这篇综述面向对金属纳米团簇领域感兴趣的更广泛的科学界，并希望为研究纳米材料的科学家开辟新的视野。这篇综述基于截至 2018 年 3 月的可用出版物。
