Soft landing of cage-like, negatively charged Keggin ions provides insight into energy storage
Monday, December 15, 2014 - 07:00
in Physics & Chemistry
Creating extended range electric cars and high capacity flash memory for portable electronics requires scientists to delve into the behavior of anions, negatively charged molecules, that can store extra electrons needed to get the job done. For the first time, scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) determined how carefully prepared electron-rich anions interact with three well-known carbon-based surfaces. Unlike positively charged ions, anions retain their charge and fail to transfer electrons to the surface. The Keggin anions (see sidebar) refuse to release their electrons to the surface because of the substantial force holding the electrons to the molecule.