Cluster‐based Materials for Energy Harvesting and Storage

Cluster-assembled materials are expected to possess properties very different from those where individual atoms form the building blocks. A case in point is fullerite composed of C 60 fullerenes. Because of its size, symmetry, and intrinsic bonding features, properties of fullerite are different from graphite or diamond that are built from individual carbon atoms. Unfortunately, no other cluster as stable as C 60 has been found from gas-phase studies that can retain its structure when assembled. The current methods for forming cluster-assembled materials are to use ligands to keep them from coalescing or to deposit them on substrates. In this chapter, we take a different approach by realizing that the constituents of many complex solids such as perovskites, Chevrel, and Zintl phase compounds can be thought of as clusters. With the knowledge gained from gas-phase clusters, we discuss how new materials can be designed using cluster ions as building blocks. The applications of these cluster-based materials in solar cells, Li-ion batteries, and hydrogen storage are discussed. Also covered in this chapter are ways in which multiply charged clusters can be created to promote unusual chemistry.