Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 1, 2026
Computation of Atmospheric Concentrations of Molecular Clusters from ab initio Thermochemistry
Published on: April 8, 2020
Exploring the potential energy surface of E₂P₄ clusters (E=Group 13 element): the quest for inverse carbon-free
Abril C Castro1, Edison Osorio, José Luis Cabellos
1Institut de Química Computacional i Catàlisi and Dept. de Química, Universitat de Girona, Campus de Montilivi, 17071 Girona, Catalonia (Spain); Departamento de Física Aplicada, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados, Unidad Mérida, Km 6 Antigua Carretera a Progreso. Apdo. Postal 73, Cordemex, 97310, Mérida, Yuc. (México).
Abstract:
Inverse carbon-free sandwich structures with formula E2P4 (E=Al, Ga, In, Tl) have been proposed as a promising new target in main-group chemistry. Our computational exploration of their corresponding potential-energy surfaces at the S12h/TZ2P level shows that indeed stable carbon-free inverse-sandwiches can be obtained if one chooses an appropriate Group 13 element for E. The boron analogue B2P4 does not form the D(4h)-symmetric inverse-sandwich structure, but instead prefers a D(2d) structure of two perpendicular BP2 units with the formation of a double B-B bond. For the other elements of Group 13, Al-Tl, the most favorable isomer is the D(4h) inverse-sandwich structure. The preference for the D(2d) isomer for B2P4 and D(4h) for their heavier analogues has been rationalized in terms of an isomerization-energy decomposition analysis, and further corroborated by determination of aromaticity of these species.
Related Concept Videos
01:24π Molecular Orbitals of 1,3-Butadiene
The simplest conjugated diene is 1,3-butadiene: a four-carbon system where each carbon is sp2-hybridized and has an unhybridized p orbital that contains an unpaired electron. According to molecular orbital theory, atomic orbitals combine to form molecular orbitals such that the...
01:13Force and Potential Energy in One Dimension
02:46Electron Configurations
The relative energies of the subshells determine the order in which atomic orbitals are filled (1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p,...
03:35Hybridization of Atomic Orbitals II
01:10Energy Diagrams - II
The point in the energy diagram at which the system’s potential energy is the lowest is known as the local minima. The system tends to stay in this position indefinitely unless acted upon by a net force. The slope of the potential energy diagram at the local minima is zero, indicating that zero net force is acting on the system. The...
01:14Energy Diagrams - I
Take the example of a skater on a parabolic ramp. The potential energy at different points along the ramp will be proportional to the height of the ramp, which varies quadratically with the horizontal position on the ramp. As the skater moves down the ramp from the highest position,...