What Are the Latest Advancements in Boron Nanocluster Research?

At the upcoming American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall 2026 Meeting, there will be a talk dedicated on highlighting the advancements that have been made in boron nanocluster research (metal nanocluster research is growing). Lai-Sheng Wang, a Jesse H. and Louisa D. Sharp Metcalf Professor of Chemistry at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, will present findings on the structural behavior of boron nanoclusters. His talk is scheduled for August 24, 2026, from 11:20 am to 11:45 am, and he will detail more than a decade of research into how boron atoms organize themselves at the nanoscale, which is work that has already informed the development of a new class of two-dimensional (2D) materials.¹

Wang is an experimental physical chemist whose research explores nanoclusters and solution-phase chemistry in the gas phase.² He earned his BS in chemistry from Wuhan University in 1982 and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1990. After a postdoctoral fellowship at Rice University and appointments at Washington State University, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Brown University, Wang advanced photoelectron spectroscopy studies that led to discoveries including golden buckyballs, planar boron clusters, aromatic clusters, and pioneering investigations of free multiply charged and complex solution-phase anions.²

What will Wang cover in his presentation?

Wang will anchor his talk around the work that his laboratory group is doing, which involves studying boron cluster using techniques such as photoelectron spectroscopy and computational chemistry. By using these techniques, Wang’s research group has determined that boron clusters, unlike the element's three-dimensional (3D) bulk form, favor flat, planar arrangements.¹ This finding provided the theoretical basis for borophene, which is a single-atom-thick boron sheet now synthesized on inert substrates in laboratories.¹ The discovery also reflects the trajectory of carbon research. Historically, the study of clusters preceded the identification of fullerenes, nanotubes and graphene, which are materials that reshaped fields from electronics to medicine.¹

What results will Wang share in his study?

Wang will touch upon the identification of a planar 36-atom boron cluster containing a hexagonal vacancy at its center, which offered the first experimental support for borophene's viability.¹ His team also identified a 40-atom boron cluster, B₄₀, as the first confirmed all-boron fullerene, which is a hollow, cage-like structure with a diameter slightly smaller than that of C₆₀, the carbon fullerene known as buckminsterfullerene.¹

The talk will also cover more recent findings on larger boron clusters, including transitions between 2D and 3D geometries and the emergence of features resembling bulk boron.

When and where does the American Chemical Society Fall 2026 Meeting take place?

ACS generally holds two conferences throughout the year, one in the spring and the other in the fall. The ACS Fall 2026 Meeting will take place this year from August 23^rd to the 27^th in Chicago, Illinois at the McCormick Place Convention Center.

The ACS Fall 2026 Meeting provides a forum for researchers, scientists, vendors, and undergraduate and graduate students to meet in one place to discuss the latest trends, technologies, and advancements in chemistry and related disciplines.³ The conference is known for having an extensive technical program, which provides attendees ample opportunities to attend talks on a wide variety of subjects that pique their interest.

Apart from the technical program, the ACS conferences are also designed to facilitate interpersonal communication and networking. Layered into the conference program are numerous social events and networking opportunities for attendees to make those new connections or catch up with old colleagues.³

Why is this meeting important for spectroscopists?

The spectroscopy community would benefit from attending this conference. There will be numerous talks that highlight how laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), Raman spectroscopy, infrared (IR) spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), mass spectrometry (MS), X-ray methods, chemometrics, and hyperspectral imaging (HSI) are being used to advance critical industries such as pharmaceutical analysis, environmental analysis, and forensics.¹

For more information about the upcoming conference, you can visit the ACS website.

References

1. Wang, L.-S. Boron Nanoclusters. Presented at the American Chemical Society Fall 2026 Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, August 24, 2026. Available at: https://acs.digitellinc.com/live/37/page/1374?search=spectroscopy&tags=475&page=55&window-jn2mj2&window-w33qsi&window-svv07a&window-t1l9zx
2. Brown University, Lai-Sheng Wang. Brown University, 2026. https://vivo.brown.edu/display/lw28 (accessed July 17, 2026).
3. Wetzel, W. Why Spectroscopists Should Attend the ACS Fall 2026 Conference. Spectroscopy Online, 2026. https://www.spectroscopyonline.com/view/why-spectroscopists-should-attend-the-acs-fall-2026-conference (accessed July 14, 2026).