Cavities and channels in Electride

An electride is an ionic compound in which an electron is the anion. A chemical compound is a substance consisting of two or more different elements chemically bonded together in a fixed proportion by Mass. The electron is a fundamental Subatomic particle that was identified and assigned the negative charge in 1897 by J An ion is an Atom or Molecule which has lost or gained one or more Valence electrons giving it a positive or negative electrical charge ^[1] The first electrides to be studied in depth were solutions of alkali metals in ammonia. Trends The alkali metals show a number of trends when moving down the group - for instance decreasing electronegativity increasing reactivity and decreasing melting and boiling Ammonia is a compound with the formula N[[hydrogen H3]] It is normally encountered as a Gas with a characteristic pungent Odor ^[2] When sodium metal dissolves in ammonia, the result is a blue solution consisting of [Na(NH₃)₆]⁺ and solvated electrons. Ammonia is a compound with the formula N[[hydrogen H3]] It is normally encountered as a Gas with a characteristic pungent Odor Such solutions are powerfully reducing, as demonstrated by their use in Birch Reductions. A reducing agent (also called a reductant or reducer) is the element or a compound in a Redox (reduction-oxidation reaction (see Electrochemistry The Birch reduction is the Organic reduction of aromatic rings with Sodium and an Alcohol in liquid Ammonia to form 14-cyclohexadienes Evaporation of these blue solutions affords a mirror of Na. Such solutions slowly lose their colour as the electrons reduce ammonia:

[Na(NH₃)₆]⁺e^- + NH₃ → NaNH₂ + H₂

Addition of 2,2,2-cryptand to a solution of [Na(NH₃)₆]⁺e^- affords [Na(2,2,2-crypt)]⁺e^-. Sodium amide, commonly called sodamide is the Chemical compound with the formula NaNH2 Cryptands are a family of synthetic bi- and polycyclic multidentate Ligands for a variety of cations Evaporation of these solutions yields a blue-black paramagnetic salt with the formula [Na(2,2,2-crypt)]⁺e^-. Such salts decompose above 240 K. In these salts, the electron is delocalized between the cations. Electrides are paramagnetic and Mott insulators. Paramagnetism is a form of magnetism which occurs only in the presence of an externally applied magnetic field Mott insulators are a class of materials that are expected to conduct Electricity under conventional band theories, but which in fact turn out to be

References

J. L. Dye, M. J. Wagner, G. Overney, R. H. Huang, T. F. Nagy, and D. Tománek. Cavities and Channels in Electrides. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 118, 7329 (1996).