Synthesis of silica-stabilized Ag44 clusters aided by a designed mercaptosilane ligand

The novel and precise design of both a microscopic ligand and macroscopic structure has been demonstrated to improve the stability and potential optical applications of Ag-44 clusters. The ligand with designed silane substituents on its thiophenol enabled the synthesized [Ag-44(SPhSi(OEt)(3))(30)](PPh4)(4) clusters to maintain UV-vis absorption for 13 h when heated at 60 degrees C in air and be readily coated with silica shells via a one-pot reverse microemulsion method. This composite structure overcomes the issue that non-luminescent Ag-44 clusters cannot be applied in photothermal and photoacoustic imaging due to their instability.

Automated summary

The stability and potential optical applications of Ag-44 clusters have been improved by the novel design of a microscopic ligand and macroscopic structure. This design allows the clusters to maintain UV-vis absorption for 13 hours when heated in air and be coated with silica shells.