A pathway to stable, high-activity catalysts from gold nanoclusters

Catalysts are ubiquitous, whether in the form of an enzyme in the body that digests food or the catalytic converter in the car that breaks down pollutants. Catalysts play an important role in making chemical reactions more efficient. Recently, atomically precise metal nanoclusters (NCs) that can accelerate various thermal, electrochemical, and photochemical reactions have been used to design useful catalysts. These NCs are tiny particles (less than 2 nanometers) whose properties can be modified by changing their atomic composition. Metal NCs have received considerable attention, with scientists trying to find various ways of synthesizing NCs with unique functions.