High-pressure stability, transformations, and vibrational dynamics of nitrosonium nitrate from synchrotron infrared and Raman spectroscopy

Abstract

The properties of nitrosonium nitrate (NO+NO3−) were investigated following synthesis by laser heating of N2O and N2O4 under high pressures in a diamond anvil cell. Synchrotron infrared absorption spectra of NO+NO3− were measured at pressures up to 32 GPa at room temperature. Raman spectra were obtained at pressures up to 40 GPa at room temperature and up to 14 GPa at temperatures down to 80 K. For both lattice and intramolecular vibrational modes, a smooth evolution of spectral bands with pressure indicates that NO+NO3− forms a single phase over a broad range above 10 GPa, whereas marked changes, particularly evident in the Raman spectra at low temperature, indicate a phase transition occurs near 5 GPa. NO+NO3− could be recovered at atmospheric pressure and low temperature, persisting to 180 K. The Raman and IR spectroscopic data suggest that the NO+NO3− produced by laser heating of N2O followed by decompression may differ in structure or orientational order–disorder from that produced by autoionization of N2O4.