Two-dimensional Ca-Cl crystals under ambient conditions observed directly by cryo-electron microscopy

Abstract

Recently, we report the direct observation, under ambient conditions, of Na2Cl and Na3Cl as two-dimensional (2D) Na-Cl crystals, together with regular NaCl, on reduced graphene oxide membranes and on the surfaces of natural graphite powders from salt solutions far below the saturated concentration. However, what are these abnormal stoichiometries for high valence ions, such as calcium ions and copper ions still remain unknown. Here, using cryo-electron microscopy, we report the direct observation of two-dimensional (2D) Ca-Cl crystals on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) membranes, in which the calcium ions are only monovalent (i.e. +1). Remarkably, metallic properties rather than insulating are displayed by those CaCl crystals. We note that such CaCl crystals are obtained by simply incubating rGO membranes in salt solutions below the saturated concentration, under ambient conditions. Theoretical studies show that the formation of those abnormal crystals is attributed to the strong cation-pi interactions of the Ca2+ ions with the aromatic rings in the graphitic surfaces. Since strong cation-pi interactions also exist between other metal ions (such as Mg2+, Fe2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Cd2+, Cr2+ and Pb2+) and graphitic surfaces, similar 2D crystals with abnormal valence state of the metal cations and corresponding abnormal properties are highly expected. The 2D crystals with monovalent calcium ions show unusual electronic properties, and can be applicated in catalyzer, hydrogen storage, high-performance conducting electrodes and sensors. These findings also produce functionalized graphene including compact "graphene-metallic CaCl-insulating CaCl2" junction that can serve as transistors down to the atomic scale, and other devices for magnetic, optical and mechanical applications.