Gold clusters morphology on LiNbO₃ (0001) surfaces with opposite polarization direction

Gold clusters are considered as widely used catalyst for chemical industry, but the efficiency of catalyst has been limited by the aggregation of the gold atoms, since the active sites are only located on the surface of the catalyst particles. In this paper the surface distribution of gold clusters influenced by spontaneous polarization and temperature is discussed. The morphology of the gold particle on different ferroelectric surface was simulated by the dissipative particle dynamics method, and the results are examined by pulsed laser deposition and Atomic Force Microscopy. The negatively poled surface with temperature adjustment could grow more dispersed gold clusters and offer a new progress to select the ferroelectric materials as the substrates for metal catalyst.