A Giant Dy₇₆ Cluster: A Fused Bi-Nanopillar Structural Model for Lanthanide Clusters

Although great achievements have been made in the synthesis of giant lanthanide clusters, novel structural models are still scarce. Herein, we report a giant lanthanide cluster Dy₇₆ , constructed from [Dy₃ (μ₃ -OH)₄ ] and [Dy₅ (μ₄ -O)(μ₃ -OH)₈ ] building blocks. As the largest known Dy cluster, the structure of Dy₇₆ can be seen as arising from the fusion of two Dy₄₈ clusters; these clusters can be isolated under various synthetic conditions and were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. This new, fused structural model of the pillar motif has not been found in Ln clusters. Furthermore, the successful conversion of Dy₇₆ back into Dy₄₈ in a retrosynthetic manner supports the proposed fusion formation mechanism of Dy₇₆ . Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) analysis suggests that the metal cluster skeleton of Dy₇₆ shows good stability in various solvents. This work not only reveals a new structural type of Ln clusters but also provides insight into the novel fusion assembly process.