Nanoalloying in real time. A high resolution STEM and computer simulation studyElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: (S1) (a) Aberration corrected STEM-HAADF image taken after beam irradiation, where the intensity profile, marked by a red rectangle, was taken. The white arrow indicates the analysis direction. (S2) Elemental analysis carried out on a nanoparticle composed of Au and Pd. (a) STEM-HAADF image with the line where the scan was performed pointing to the scan direction a

• Main Authors: Mariscal, M. M, Mayoral, A, Olmos-Asar, J. A, Magen, C, Mejía-Rosales, S, Pérez-Tijerina, E, José-Yacamán, M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2040-3364; 2040-3372
• DOI: 10.1039/c1nr11052g

Bimetallic nanoparticles constitute a promising type of catalysts, mainly because their physical and chemical properties may be tuned by varying their chemical composition, atomic ordering, and size. Today, the design of novel nanocatalysts is possible through a combination of virtual lab simulations on massive parallel computing and modern electron microscopy with picometre resolution on one hand, and the capability of chemical analysis at the atomic scale on the other. In this work we show how the combination of theoretical calculations and characterization can solve some of the paradoxes reported about nanocatalysts: Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles. In particular, we demonstrate the key role played by adsorbates, such as carbon monoxide (CO), on the structure of nanoalloys. Our results imply that surface condition of nanoparticles during synthesis is a parameter of paramount importance. In this paper we demonstrate the key role played by adsorbates such as CO on the structure of bimetallic nanoparticles.