Octavio Juárez−Sánchez

Octavio Juárez−Sánchez


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

1Year (2026-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

View All Publications
17 April 2026 in Computation
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
KLKaren Ochoa Lara
Karen Ochoa Lara
PVPedro Jancarlo Gomez Vega
Pedro Jancarlo Gomez Vega
RPRafael Pacheco-Contreras
Rafael Pacheco-Contreras
OJOctavio Juárez−Sánchez
Octavio Juárez−Sánchez
Understanding the intrinsic Li–H2 interaction, decoupled from substrate effects, is essential to rationalize the performance of lithium-decorated hydrogen storage materials. To address the current lack of a clean theoretical baseline, we characterized the sequential H2 adsorption on the gas-phase Li6 superatomic cluster using high-level density functional theory (DFT), complemented by Energy Decomposition Analysis (EDA), QTAIM, and NICS(0) calculations. Li6 acts as a structurally rigid platform (RMSD < 0.032 Å) where ligand-induced polarization progressively strengthens its σ-aromaticity (NICS(0) from −2.917 to −13.98 ppm) and increases the HOMO–LUMO gap up to 5.05 eV. EDA identifies the binding as field-activated physisorption, electrostatically dominated (65–67%) and mechanistically distinct from Kubas coordination, as confirmed by QTAIM closed-shell interaction parameters. Negative cooperativity governs an effective loading capacity of n = 2 molecules under cryogenic conditions (Teq = 143.76 and 114.64 K), while an entropic bottleneck renders higher loading non-spontaneous at all temperatures. These results establish Li6(H2)n as a foundational gas-phase reference, providing a systematic, contamination-free descriptor set for the intrinsic Li–H2 interaction. This framework is essential for isolating the electronic role of the lithium superatom and unambiguously identifying substrate-induced modulations in supported hydrogen storage materials.