Experimental and Theoretical Investigations of the Thermodynamic Stability of BaC60 and KC60 Compound Clusters

ecently, a tremendous amount of experimental and theoretical effort has been directed toward the study of clusters due to their potential applica-tions in nanotechnology.1–6 For example, chemically inert clusters may be ideal build-ing blocks for tailored nanomaterials. Thus, it is important to uncover general principles which may be used to explain enhanced cluster stability and to understand how the experimental conditions affect which super-stable (magic) clusters are produced. Often, geometric and electronic shell fill-ing arguments can adequately explain the pronounced stability of so-called magi