Electronic shell study of prolate Lin(n=15–17)clusters:Magnetic superatomic molecules

The non-spherical lowest-lying Lin(n=15–17)isomers were found with high symmetric compact structures,of which the stability was not rationalized in a previous report(J.Chem.Phys.1199444(2003)).Based on the newly proposed super-valence bond model,the three prolate lithium clusters can be viewed as magnetic superatomic molecules,which are composed by sharing valence electron pairs and nuclei between two superatom units,namely,Li10 or Li11,and thus their stability can be given a good understanding.Molecular orbital and chemical bonding analysis clearly reveal that the Lin(n=15–17)clusters with prolate shapes are magnetic superatomic molecules.Our work may aid in the developments of the cluster-assembled materials or superatom-bonds.