High pressure decomposition of a sandwich compound

While it is widely recognized that purely organic molecular systems with multiple bonds undergo chemical condensation at sufficiently high pressures (from tenths to tens of GPa), the fate of organometallics at extreme conditions remains largely underexplored. We have investigated the high pressure (up to 41 GPa) chemical transformations in a simple molecular system known as nickelocene, (C5H5)2Ni, which serves as a representative example of a class of organometallics called sandwich compounds. Nickelocene decomposed above 13 GPa, at room temperature, while lower pressure thresholds have been observed at higher temperatures (295-573 K). The products were identified as nanocomposite materials, primarily composed of disordered, nickel-rich nanoparticles segregated within an extended, amorphous matrix of hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H). The investigation was conducted by means of diamond anvil cells in combination with optical spectroscopies and microscopy, synchrotron x-ray absorption spectroscopy and diffraction, as well as transmission electron microscopy. Our findings have the potential to stimulate further research into the high-pressure chemical reactivity of organometallics and open up new synthesis routes for the production of metal-based nanoparticles, which find a wide range of applications.