Introduction to Cluster Chemistry (Prentice Hall Inorganic and Organometallic Chemistry Series)

Prentice Hall, 1990. First Edition. Hardcover. Good. 9x6x0. Hardcover. Good binding and cover. Library stamps and markings. Shelf wear. Edge bumped. <br> In chemistry, a cluster is an ensemble of bound atoms or molecules that is intermediate in size between a molecule and a bulk solid. Clusters exist of diverse stoichiometries and nuclearities. For example, carbon and boron atoms form fullerene and borane clusters, respectively. Transition metals and main group elements form especially robust clusters. Clusters can also consist solely of a certain kind of molecules, such as water clusters. The phrase cluster was coined by F.A. Cotton in the early 1960s to refer to compounds containing metal-metal bonds. In another definition a cluster compound contains a group of two or more metal atoms where direct and substantial metal bonding is present.