Title: Application of Superhalogens in the Design of Organic Superconductors,
Abstract: Bechgaard salts, (TMTSF)2X (TMTSF = tetramethyl tetraselenafulvalene and X =
complex anion), form the most popular series of organic superconductors. In
these salts, TMTSF molecules act as super-electron donor and X as acceptor. We
computationally examine the electronic structure and properties of X in
commonly used (TMTSF)2X (X = NO3, BF4, ClO4, PF6) superconductors and notice
that they belong to the class of superhalogens due to their higher vertical
detachment energy than halogen anions. This prompted us to choose other
superhalogens such as X = BO2, BH4, B2F7, AuF6 and study their (TMTSF)2X
complexes. Our findings suggest that these complexes behave more or less
similar to those of established (TMTSF)2X superconductors, particularly for X =
BO2 and B2F7. We, therefore, believe that the concept of superhalogen can be
successfully applied in the design of novel organic superconductors.