Isomorphous Substitution in Bimetallic Oxide Clusters

The geometric and electronic structure of bimetallic oxide clusters is studied as a function of their composition with gas phase vibrational spectroscopy. Infrared multiple photon dissociation spectra of titanium-vanadium oxide cluster anions are measured in the 500 to 1200 wave number range and assigned on the basis of harmonic frequencies calculated using density functional theory. Singly substituted (V₂O₅)_n-1(VTiO₅)^- ($n=2--4$) cluster anions are shown to form polyhedral caged structures similar to those predicted for their isoelectronic counterparts, the neutral (V₂O₅)ₙ clusters. Upon systematic exchange of V by Ti atoms in V_4-nTiₙO₁₀^- ($n=1--4$), the structure does not change. The stress induced by the isomorphous substitution results in an increased number of unpaired electrons (n-1) for the Ti-rich systems, leading to a quartet ground state for Ti₄O₁₀^-.