Spectroscopic Analysis of the Transition Metal Aluminides: AlNi, AlCu, and AlZn

A systematic gas-phase spectroscopic investigation of the transition metal aluminides has recently been initiated in this laboratory, with the aim of providing fundamental experimental measurements relevant to the chemical bonding between the p-block and d-block metals. In this study we hope to determine in what cases the aluminum atom bonds to the transition metal through a pσ vs. a pπ approach, and to investigate the possibility of pσ-dσ and pπ-dπ bonds in these mixed main group-transition metal molecules. The fundamental results obtained through the study of the transition metal aluminides may well be relevant to the forces acting between atoms in the bulk alloys of these elements, and this may provide new insights into the metallurgy of aluminum-transition metal alloys.