Abstract

We report the global minima structures of Li8Si8, Li10Si9, and Li12Si10 systems, in which silicon moieties maintain structural and chemical bonding characteristics similar to those of their building blocks: the aromatic clusters T-d-Li4Si4 and C-2v-Li6Si5. Electron counting rules, chemical bonding analysis, and magnetic response properties verify the silicon unit's aromaticity persistence. This study demonstrates the feasibility of assembling silicon-based nanostructures from aromatics clusters as building blocks.