Au nanocluster adsorption and agglomeration control through sulfur modification of mesoporous TiO.

In the present work phenyl phosphine-protected Au nanoclusters were deposited onto (3-mercaptopropyl) trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) modified and unmodified mesoporous screen printed TiO. The removal of the cluster ligands by annealing was applied to enhance the interaction between Au cluster cores and semiconductor surfaces in the creation of efficient photocatalytic systems. The heat treatment could lead to undesired agglomeration of Au clusters, affecting their unique properties as size specific clusters.