Infrared and microwave investigations of interconversion tunneling in the acetylene dimer

Abstract

A sub-Doppler infrared spectrum of (HCCH)2 has been obtained in the region of the acetylene C–H stretching fundamental using an optothermal molecular-beam color-center laser spectrometer. Microwave spectra were obtained for the ground vibrational state using a pulsed-nozzle Fourier transform microwave spectrometer. In the infrared spectrum, both a parallel and perpendicular band are observed with the parallel band being previously assigned to a T-shaped C2v complex by Prichard, Nandi, and Muenter and the perpendicular band to a C2h complex by Bryant, Eggers, and Watts. The parallel band exhibits three Ka=0 and three asymmetry-doubled Ka=1 series. The transitions show a clear intensity alternation with Kc with two of the Ka=0 series missing every other line. In addition, the perpendicular band has the same ground-state combination differences as the parallel band. To explain these apparent anomalies in the spectrum, we invoke a model consisting of a T-shaped complex with interconversion tunneling between four isoenergetic hydrogen-bonded minima. In this picture, the parallel and perpendicular bands arise from excitation of the acetylene units parallel and perpendicular to the hydrogen bond. The observation of rotation–inversion transitions in the microwave spectrum, in addition to the pure rotation transitions of Prichard, Nandi, and Muenter, verifies the model. The measured microwave splittings yield a tunneling frequency of 2.2 GHz which is consistent with a ∼33 cm−1 barrier separating the four minima.