Symmetry breaking and spectral considerations of the surprisingly floppy c-C3H radical and the related dipole-bound excited state of c-C3H.

Abstract

The C3H radical is believed to be prevalent throughout the interstellar medium and may be involved in the formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. C3H exists as both a linear and a cyclic isomer. The C2v cyclopropenylidenyl radical isomer was detected in the dark molecular cloud TMC-1, and the linear propenylidenyl radical isomer has been observed in various dark molecular clouds. Even though the c-C3H radical has been classified rotationally, the vibrational frequencies of this seemingly important interstellar molecule have never been directly observed. Established, highly accurate quartic force field methodologies are employed here to compute useful geometrical data, spectroscopic constants, and vibrational frequencies. The computed rotational constants are consistent with the experimental results. Consequently, the three a1 (ν1, ν2, and ν3) and one b1 (ν6) anharmonic vibrational frequencies at 3117.7 cm-1, 1564.3 cm-1, 1198.5 cm-1, and 826.7 cm-1, respectively, are reliable predictions for these, as of yet unseen, observables. Unfortunately, the two b2 fundamentals (ν4 and ν5) cannot be treated adequately in the current approach due to a flat and possible double-well potential described in detail herein. The dipole-bound excited state of the anion suffers from the same issues and may not even be bound. However, the trusted fundamental vibrational frequencies described for the neutral radical should not be affected by this deformity and are the first robustly produced for c-C3H. The insights gained here will also be applicable to other structures containing three-membered bare and exposed carbon rings that are surprisingly floppy in nature.