Formation of Au-pseudocarbynes by self-assembly of carbon chains and gold clusters

Au-pseudocarbynes are a new class of materials produced through non-covalent interactions between finite one dimensional sp-hybridized carbon chains and sub-nanometer metal clusters. These exciting and innovative materials are expected to approach the unprecedented theoretical strength, elastic modulus, and stiffness of carbyne, which has defied isolation and characterization for over a century. The current approach for synthesizing Au-pseudocarbynes relies on the laser ablation of a liquid/metal interface, and therefore limits its production to small yields through laser ablation. In this study, we synthesized Au-pseudocarbynes by a self-assembly of previously prepared gold clusters and polyynes in solution, which yields similar results under spectroscopic analysis and through x-ray diffraction to the products synthesized via laser ablation. Therefore, we obtain new insights toward their formation mechanism by showing that the extreme temperatures and pressures provided by laser ablation are not necessary for assembling gold particles with polyynes. This self-assembly approach also provides a new way to develop Au-pseudocarbynes for applications by enabling large-scale synthesis.