Body-Centered-Cubic-Kernelled Ag15Cu6Nanocluster with Alkynyl Protection: Synthesis, Total Structure, and CO2Electroreduction

While atomically monodisperse nanostructured materials are highly desirable to unravel the size- and structure-catalysis relationships, their controlled synthesis and the atomic-level structure determination pose challenges. Particularly, copper-containing atomically precise alloy nanoclusters are potential catalyst candidates for the electrochemical CO2reduction reaction (eCO2RR) due to high abundance and tunable catalytic activity of copper. Herein, we report the synthesis and total structure of an alkynyl-protected 21-atom AgCu alloy nanocluster [Ag15Cu6(C≡CR)18(DPPE)2]−, denoted as Ag15Cu6(HC≡CR: 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenylacetylene;