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Complexes of atomic gold with a variety of ligands have been formed by passing helium nanodroplets (HNDs) through two pickup cells containing gold vapor and the vapor of another dopant, namely a rare gas, a diatomic molecule (H₂, N₂, O₂, I₂, P₂), or various polyatomic molecules (H₂O, CO₂, SF₆, C₆H₆, adamantane, imidazole, dicyclopentadiene, and fullerene). The doped HNDs were irradiated by electrons; ensuing cations were identified in a high-resolution mass spectrometer. Anions were detected for benzene, dicyclopentadiene, and fullerene. For most ligands L, the abundance distribution of AuL<i>_n</i>⁺ versus size <i>n</i> displays a remarkable enhancement at <i>n</i> = 2. The propensity towards bis-ligand formation is attributed to the formation of covalent bonds in Au⁺L₂ which adopt a dumbbell structure, L-Au⁺-L, as previously found for L = Xe and C₆₀. Another interesting observation is the effect of gold on the degree of ionization-induced intramolecular fragmentation. For most systems gold enhances the fragmentation, i.e., intramolecular fragmentation in AuL<i>_n</i>⁺ is larger than in pure L<i>_n</i>⁺. Hydrogen, on the other hand, behaves differently, as intramolecular fragmentation in Au(H₂)<i>_n</i>⁺ is weaker than in pure (H₂)<i>_n</i>⁺ by an order of magnitude.