Topography of cyclopropyl radical ring opening to allyl radical on the CASSCF(3,3) surface: valley-ridge inflection points by Newton trajectories

Abstract

Valley-ridge inflection points (VRI) on the potential energy surface for the ring opening of the cyclopropyl radical to the allyl radical are determined using the tool of Newton trajectories (NTs) (Quapp and Schmidt in Theor Chem Acc 128:47, 2011). The UHF surface is treated in a former paper (Quapp et al. in Theor Chem Acc 129:803, 2011). This paper is the extension to the more expensive CASSCF(3,3) surface. We compare the results on the UHF surface with the more appropriate calculation: there are quantitative as well as qualitative changes, of course. But many fundamental relations are the same on both surfaces. However, we could detect new pathways on the CASSCF(3,3) surface which highlight the bifurcation problem of this radical. VRIs play a role in the understanding of bifurcating reactions. The region where the bifurcation takes place is governed by a VRI point. Because the transition state of the ring opening is not symmetric, the steepest descent (SD) from the transition state is not along a symmetry axis either, and in this case the SD usually fails a downhill VRI point. The SD from the transition state of the ring opening goes to the disrotatory minimum of the allyl radical. In contrast, we find some pathways which end at the conrotatory minimum, and which go along so-called non steepest descent paths, at least in parts. The region of interest (around the SP of the ring opening) is crossed by electronic intersection seams. Conical intersection points on the seam can be detected by NTs. We use the possibility to explore parts of the intersection seam of the lower CAS surface and we determine connected VRI points being the corner stones of the possible ring opening channels in the disrotatory and the conrotatory case.