Alkali metal cations and halogen anions are common components of ionic salts. Recently, a new class of salts termed supersalts was reported, each of which contains a superalkali and a superhalogen that mimic an alkali metal cation and a halogen anion, respectively. Using three different functionals, namely B3LYP, wB97X, and M06-2X, we theoretically investigated a new subset of supersalts composed of Zintl-based superalkalis and inorganic superhalogens via computational modeling. The calculated dipole moment and first-order hyperpolarizability values for these supersalts indicate that they present nonlinear optical (NLO) behavior. The supersalts of Zintl superalkalis (Ca2P7, Sr2P7, Ba2P7) and superhalogens (BF4, BeF3, NO3) studied here were found to be stable. Graphical Abstract Using the first-principles calculation, a new class of supersalts by using Zintl-based superalkalis and inorganic superhalogens has been designed.
Keywords: DFT; Electron affinity; Ionization energy; Superalkali; Superhalogens; Supersalts; Zintl ion.