Gold has long been synonymous with inertness—it barely reacts with anything, a fact that allows it to maintain its brilliance for millennia. However, a surprising discovery at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in the United States has completely rewritten our understanding of gold. While conducting high-pressure, high-temperature experiments simulating the conditions of a planetary core, scientists unexpectedly combined gold with hydrogen atoms, creating a first-of-its-kind solid compound: gold hydride. This discovery not only challenges chemistry textbooks but also potentially opens new chapters in the exploration of the universe and the development of new materials.
Table of Contents
Gold’s Chemical Inertness: A Symbol of Eternity and Non-Reactivity
Since ancient times, gold has symbolized wealth and eternity, partly due to its near-inertness to chemical reactions. Indifferent to oxygen, water, and most substances, gold resists rusting or corroding, allowing it to be preserved for a long time and used as a currency and store of value. In chemistry, gold is classified as a “very inert” metal, rarely forming compounds with other elements.
Challenging the Impossible: The Birth of Gold Hydrogen
However, a research team at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in the United States unexpectedly combined gold and hydrogen atoms in an extreme experiment, creating a never-before-seen solid called “gold hydride.” This discovery shattered the perception of gold’s inertness and revealed new chemical behaviors that can be triggered by extreme pressures and temperatures.
High-pressure, high-temperature experiments: From diamonds to new materials
The research team’s original goal was to observe the transformation of hydrocarbons into diamonds under ultrahigh pressure and temperature. They placed hydrocarbon samples embedded in gold foil in a custom-made “pressure cooker” at temperatures exceeding 1,900°C and pressures reaching millions of times atmospheric pressure. They then heated and observed the process using a European X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL).
In addition to the expected formation of diamond structures, the team unexpectedly discovered that hydrogen atoms reacted with the gold foil, forming a stable gold hydride signal. Even more surprising, the hydrogen in this environment took on a “superionic” state, freely moving through the gold lattice and significantly enhancing the conductivity of the gold hydride.
New rules for chemistry under extreme conditions
At normal temperature and pressure, gold hydride is virtually impossible to exist stably. However, under extreme pressure and temperature, conventional chemical rules appear to be rewritten, allowing even this inert metal to combine with hydrogen. Research has shown that as pressure increases, the gold lattice can accommodate even more hydrogen atoms, potentially forming more complex compounds or compounds with unique properties.
New way to observe dense hydrogen
Because hydrogen is an extremely light element and scatters X-rays very weakly, it has been difficult to observe directly. However, the structure of gold hydride allows scientists to indirectly track the behavior of hydrogen through the gold lattice. This provides a new method for studying dense hydrogen inside planetary interiors, especially in extreme environments such as those found in giant planets like Jupiter and Saturn, or in the cores of stars.
Revelations from the lab to the universe
The discovery of gold hydride is not only a major breakthrough in materials science but also has the potential to advance astronomy and Earth science. It can help us simulate the material states within exoplanets and even provide new clues to understanding the fusion processes within stellar cores. In the future, this technology and simulation method may also be applied to fusion energy research, contributing to the development of clean energy.
Exploring the future possibilities of new chemistry
The SLAC team’s results demonstrate that under extreme conditions, the effects of temperature and pressure can compete with the traditional laws of chemistry, giving rise to entirely new compounds and exotic phases. Beyond gold hydride, this experimental and simulation framework can be extended to other elements and materials, opening a new avenue for exploring uncharted chemistry.
Reference:
- 本想研究碳氫化合物如何變鑽石，科學家意外合成極端材料「氫化金」
- SLAC researchers forge unprecedented gold compound at extreme heat and pressure
(Source of the first image: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)
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