The ligand-protected Au13 clusters have been synthesized by using meso-2,3-imercaptosuccinic acid as the reducing and stabilizing agent. Transmission electron microscopic analysis shows a size distribution of 0.6nm. Optical spectrum shows an absorbance peak at 390 nm. The electrical transport measurement devices are fabricated using the electro-migration method. Coulomb blockade is observed at the temperature of 1.6 K,revealing the formation of the tunneling junction. The Coulomb oscillation on-off ratio is nearly 5. Three peaks are extracted in the dI-dV data and attributed to the energy levels of Au13 clusters, gapped by about 60 meV. First principle calculations are carried out to interpret the energy diagram.
@article{arxiv.1701.06151,
title = {The Synthesis and Electrical Transport of Ligand-Protected Au13 Clusters},
author = {Zhongxia Wei and Wanrun Jiang and Zhanbin Bai and Zhen Lian and Zhigang Wang and Fengqi Song},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1701.06151},
year = {2017}
}