Laser ablation synthesis of new gold phosphides using red phosphorus and nanogold as precursors. Laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Nagender Reddy Panyala; Eladia María Peña-Méndez; Josef Havel

doi:10.1002/rcm.6207

Laser ablation synthesis of new gold phosphides using red phosphorus and nanogold as precursors. Laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom. 2012 May 15;26(9):1100-8. doi: 10.1002/rcm.6207.

Authors

Nagender Reddy Panyala¹, Eladia María Peña-Méndez, Josef Havel

Affiliation

¹ Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5/A14, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic.

PMID: 22467460
DOI: 10.1002/rcm.6207

Abstract

Gold phosphides show unique optical or semiconductor properties and there are extensive high technology applications, e.g. in laser diodes, etc. In spite of the various AuP structures known, the search for new materials is wide. Laser ablation synthesis is a promising screening and synthetic method. Generation of gold phosphides via laser ablation of red phosphorus and nanogold mixtures was studied using laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LDI TOFMS). Gold clusters Au(m)(+) (m = 1 to ~35) were observed with a difference of one gold atom and their intensities were in decreasing order with respect to m. For P(n)(+) (n = 2 to ~111) clusters, the intensities of odd-numbered phosphorus clusters are much higher than those for even-numbered phosphorus clusters. During ablation of P-nanogold mixtures, clusters Au(m)(+) (m = 1-12), P(n)(+) (n = 2-7, 9, 11, 13-33, 35-95 (odd numbers)), AuP(n)(+) (n = 1, 2-88 (even numbers)), Au(2)P(n)(+) (n = 1-7, 14-16, 21-51 (odd numbers)), Au(3)P(n)(+) (n = 1-6, 8, 9, 14), Au(4)P(n)(+) (n = 1-9, 14-16), Au(5)P(n)(+) (n = 1-6, 14, 16), Au(6)P(n)(+) (n = 1-6), Au(7)P(n)(+) (n = 1-7), Au(8)P(n)(+) (n = 1-6, 8), Au(9)P(n)(+) (n = 1-10), Au(10)P(n)(+) (n = 1-8, 15), Au(11)P(n)(+) (n = 1-6), and Au(12)P(n)(+) (n = 1, 2, 4) were detected in positive ion mode. In negative ion mode, Au(m)(-) (m = 1-5), P(n)(-) (n = 2, 3, 5-11, 13-19, 21-35, 39, 41, 47, 49, 55 (odd numbers)), AuP(n)(-) (n = 4-6, 8-26, 30-36 (even numbers), 48), Au(2)P(n)(-) (n = 2-5, 8, 11, 13, 15, 17), A(3) P(n)(-) (n = 6-11, 32), Au(4)P(n)(-) (n = 1, 2, 4, 6, 10), Au(6)P(5)(-), and Au(7)P(8)(-) clusters were observed. In both modes, phosphorus-rich Au(m)P(n) clusters prevailed. The first experimental evidence for formation of AuP(60) and gold-covered phosphorus Au(12)P(n) (n = 1, 2, 4) clusters is given. The new gold phosphides generated might inspire synthesis of new Au-P materials with specific properties.