Nobler than the Noblest: Noncubic Gold Microcrystallites

G. Mettela, S. Kouser, C. Sow, S. T. Pantelides and G. U. Kulkarni
Angewandte Chemie-International Edition 57(29): 9018-9022 (2018)

Conventional gold comprised of cubic lattice is universally praised for its stability. However, well known to chemists and metallurgists, this nobility is challenged by reagents such as aqua regia, which dissolve gold to form salt solution. Among metals, Hg blends with gold to form amalgam, otherwise transition metals such as Cu, tend to interact with gold surfaces in electrochemical media. Herein, we report a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of the stability of Au microcrystallites bearing unconventional crystal lattices that exhibit enhanced stability towards Hg and aqua regia and practically no interaction with Cu during electroless plating. The unconventional gold is undoubtedly nobler.

Posted by Chaitali Sow