2003/11/24 by Alexander V. Bulgakov, Bulgakov, Alexander V., Igor Ozerov +4
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic and Molecular Clusters (physics.atm-clus) #Atomic and Molecular Physics #Chemical Physics (physics.chem-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Laser-Ablation Synthesis of Nanoparticles #Laser-induced spectroscopy and plasma #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Plasma Physics (physics.plasm-ph) #cond-mat.mtrl-sci #physics.atm-clus #physics.chem-ph #physics.plasm-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.physics/0311117
arxiv created 2003/11/24 · openalex publication_date 2003/11/24 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Positively charged zinc oxide clusters ZnnOm (up to n = 16, m <= n) of various stoichiometry were synthesized in the gas phase by excimer ArF laser ablation of a ZnO target and investigated using time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Depending on ablation conditions, either metal rich or stoichiometric clusters dominate in the mass spectrum. When the irradiated target surface is fairly fresh, the most abundant clusters are metal rich with Zn(n+1)On and Zn(n+3)On being the major series. The stoichiometric clusters are observed with an etched ablated surface. The magic numbers at n = 9, 11 and 15 in mass spectra of (ZnO)n clusters indicate that the clusters have hollow spheroid structures related to fullerenes. A local abundance minimum at n = 13 provides an additional evidence for the presence in the ablation plume of fullerene-like (ZnO)n clusters.