Mariscal M.M., Oviedo O.A., Leiva E.P.M. Metal Clusters and Nanoalloys. From Modeling to Applications

Springer Science+Business Media, New York, 2013. — 358 p.From the point of view of academic research, nanoparticles show remarkable properties due to the transition from the atomic quantum mechanical behavior to the classical behavior which governs bulk materials, making them ideal candidates for testing and developing new theories. In particular, metallic nanoparticles seem to be promising materials for potential applications in various technological areas related to different spheres of human life ranging from catalysis of chemical reactions to cancer detection and healing. As it usually happens in cases of hasty technological developments, the urge for generating these new nanomaterials is so strong that in many cases things are put to work-and they work pretty well!-without much wondering about the subtle reasons behind such results. After all, life evolution, a typical nanophenomenon, just happened that way. This lack of modeling of nanophenomena-as compared to the abundant experimental research-is of course not on purpose, but rather the result of the intrinsic complexity of modeling systems and situations where chemical and physical phenomena are strongly entangled. Awakening the interest of experimental researchers in the newest modeling tools applied to metal nanoparticles is one of the main goals of the present book. Thus, in ten chapters written by experts in the field we present the most advanced techniques employed to model and simulate metallic nanoparticles, with emphasis on their application to experimental results. These tools range fromstatistical mechanics and molecular dynamic simulations to very specific quantum mechanical calculations.Experimental and Simulated Electron Microscopy in the Study of Metal Nanostructures
Density-Functional Theory of Free and Supported Metal Nanoclusters and Nanoalloys
Closed-Shell Metal Clusters
Optical Properties of Metal Nanoclusters from an Atomistic Point of View
Spin-Fluctuation Theory of Cluster Magnetism
Global Optimization of Free and Supported Clusters
Structure and Chemical Ordering in Nanoalloys: Toward Nanoalloy Phase Diagrams
Modelling Janus Nanoparticles
Modeling of Protected Nanoparticles
Thermodynamic Modeling of Metallic Nanoclusters