3. Ultrathin rhodium nanosheets

Duan, H., Yan, N., Yu, R., Chang, C. R., Zhou, G., Hu, H. S., Rong, H., Niu, Z., Mao, J., Asakura, H., Tanaka, T., Dyson, P. J., Li, J. & Li, Y.*
Nat Commun 2014, 5, 3093.
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4093

Abstract
Despite significant advances in the fabrication and applications of graphene-like materials, it remains a challenge to prepare single-layered metallic materials, which have great potential applications in physics, chemistry and material science. Here we report the fabrication of poly(vinylpyrrolidone)-supported single-layered rhodium nanosheets using a facile solvothermal method. Atomic force microscope shows that the thickness of a rhodium nanosheet is <4 Å. Electron diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements suggest that the rhodium nanosheets are composed of planar single-atom-layered sheets of rhodium. Density functional theory studies reveal that the single-layered Rh nanosheet involves a δ-bonding framework, which stabilizes the single-layered structure together with the poly(vinylpyrrolidone) ligands. The poly(vinylpyrrolidone)-supported single-layered rhodium nanosheet represents a class of metallic two-dimensional structures that might inspire further fundamental advances in physics, chemistry and material science.