Liquid-like cationic sub-lattice in copper selenide clusters

Sarah L. White, Progna Banerjee and Prashant K. Jain ()
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Sarah L. White: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, CLSL A
Progna Banerjee: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Loomis Laboratory
Prashant K. Jain: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, CLSL A

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Super-ionic solids, which exhibit ion mobilities as high as those in liquids or molten salts, have been employed as solid-state electrolytes in batteries, improved thermoelectrics and fast-ion conductors in super-capacitors and fuel cells. Fast-ion transport in many of these solids is supported by a disordered, ‘liquid-like’ sub-lattice of cations mobile within a rigid anionic sub-lattice, often achieved at high temperatures or pressures via a phase transition. Here we show that ultrasmall clusters of copper selenide exhibit a disordered cationic sub-lattice under ambient conditions unlike larger nanocrystals, where Cu+ ions and vacancies form an ordered super-structure similar to the bulk solid. The clusters exhibit an unusual cationic sub-lattice arrangement wherein octahedral sites, which serve as bridges for cation migration, are stabilized by compressive strain. The room-temperature liquid-like nature of the Cu+ sub-lattice combined with the actively tunable plasmonic properties of the Cu2Se clusters make them suitable as fast electro-optic switches.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14514

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