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Chemical bonding in electron-deficient boron oxide clusters: core boronyl groups, dual 3c-4e hypervalent bonds, and
Qiang Chen1, Haigang Lu, Hua-Jin Zhai
1Nanocluster Laboratory, Institute of Molecular Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China. hj.zhai@sxu.edu.cn lisidian@sxu.edu.cn.
Abstract:
We explore the structural and bonding properties of the electron-deficient boron oxide clusters, using a series of B3On(-/0/+) (n = 2-4) clusters as examples. Global-minimum structures of these boron oxide clusters are identified via unbiased Coalescence Kick and Basin Hopping searches, which show a remarkable size and charge-state dependence. An array of new bonding elements are revealed: core boronyl groups, dual 3c-4e hypervalent bonds (ω-bonds), and rhombic 4c-4e bonds (o-bonds). In favorable cases, oxygen can exhaust all its 2s/2p electrons to facilitate the formation of B-O bonds. The current findings should help understand the bonding nature of low-dimensional boron oxide nanomaterials and bulk boron oxides.
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