Metal-C-60 interface interaction: Effects on metal dispersion in co-deposited films

In case of a metal finely dispersed in a C-60 matrix, the metal-to-C-60 cha rge transfer lowers the interface energy. The total cohesive energy per met al atom E-tot, was estimated for Au clusters in fullerite. The results show that, for a charge Q(f) greater than or equal to 1 electron (e) transferre d from the metal clusters to each C-60 cage, a minimum appears in E-tot, de fining a most stable cluster size. Thereby, the equilibrium dispersion stat e of the metal in the fullerite matrix depends on Q(f).