Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 February 2011
We present a detailed molecular-dynamics study of the coalescence of gold nanoclusters within the framework of the embedded-atom method. We find macroscopic sintering theories to be unable to describe the coalescing behavior of two small clusters, a failure we attribute to the fact that the nanocrystals are faceted; this has important consequences for the morphology of cluster-assembled materials. We also examine the static and dynamic properties of a 249-atom gold cluster on nickel surfaces.