Insights into Magnetic Interactions in a Monodisperse Gd12Fe14 Metal Cluster.

The largest Ln-Fe metal cluster [Gd12Fe14(μ3-OH)12(μ4-OH)6(μ4-O)12(TEOA)6(CH3COO)16(H2O)8]⋅(CH3COO)2(CH3CN)2⋅(H2O)20 ( 1) and the core-shell monodisperse metal cluster of 1 a@SiO2 ( 1 a=[Gd12Fe14(μ3-OH)12(μ4-OH)6(μ4-O)12(TEOA)6(CH3COO)16 (H2O)8]2+) were prepared. Experimental and theoretical studies on the magnetic properties of 1 and 1 a@SiO2 reveal that encapsulation of one cluster into one silica nanosphere not only effectively decreases intermolecular magnetic interactions but also significantly increases the zero-field splitting effect of the outer layer Fe3+ ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]