Analytical Potential Energy Surface Research Articles

The CN(X 2Σ+) + C2H6 reaction: Dynamics study based on an analytical full-dimensional potential energy surface.

The hydrogen abstraction reaction of the cyano radical with molecules of ethane presents some interesting points in the chemistry from ultra-cold to combustion environments especially with regard to HCN(v) product vibrational distribution. In order to understand its dynamics, a new analytical full-dimensional potential energy surface was developed, named PES-2023. It uses a combination of valence bond and mechanic molecular terms as the functional form, fitted to high-level abinitio calculations at the explicitly correlated CCSD(T)-F12/aug-cc-pVTZ level on a reduced and selected number of points describing the reactive process. The new surface showed a continuous and smooth behavior, describing reasonably the topology of the reaction: high exothermicity, low barrier, and presence of intermediate complexes in the entrance and exit channels. Using quasi-classical trajectory calculations (QCT) on the new PES-2023, a dynamics study was performed at room temperature with special emphasis on the HCN(v1,v2,v3) product stretching and bending vibrational excitations, and the results were compared with the experimental evidence, which presented discrepancies in the bending excitation. The available energy was mostly deposited as HCN(v) vibrational energy with the vibrational population inverted in the CH stretching mode and not inverted in the CN stretching and bending modes, thus simulating the experimental evidence. Other dynamics properties at room temperature were also analyzed; cold rotational energy distribution was found, associated with a linear and soft transition state, and backward scattering distribution was found, associated with a rebound mechanism.

Trihydrogen Cation Helium Clusters: A New Potential Energy Surface.

We present a new analytical potential energy surface (PES) for the interaction between the trihydrogen cation and a He atom, , in its electronic ground state. The proposed PES has been built as a sum of two contributions: a polarization energy term due to the electric field generated by the molecular cation at the position of the polarizable He atom, and an exchange-repulsion and dispersion interactions represented by a sum of "atom-bond" potentials between the three bonds of and the He atom. All parameters of this new PES have been chosen and fitted from data obtained from high-level ab-initio calculations. Using this new PES plus the Aziz-Slaman potential for the interaction between Helium atoms and assuming pair-wise interactions, we carry out classical Basin-Hopping (BH) global optimization, semiclassical BH with Zero Point Energy corrections, and quantum Diffusion Monte Carlo simulations. We have found the minimum energy configurations of small He clusters doped with , , with N=1-16. The study of the energies of these clusters allows us to find a pronounced anomaly for N=12, in perfect agreement with previous experimental findings, which we relate to a greater relative stability of this aggregate.

Alternating Stereospecificity upon Central-Atom Change: Dynamics of the F- +PH2 Cl SN 2 Reaction Compared to its C- and N-Centered Analogues.

Central-atom effects on bimolecular nucleophilic substitution (SN 2) reactions are well-known in chemistry, however, the atomic-level SN 2 dynamics at phosphorous (P) centers has never been studied. We investigate the dynamics of the F- +PH2 Cl reaction with the quasi-classical trajectory method on a novel full-dimensional analytical potential energy surface fitted on high-level ab initio data. Our computations reveal intermediate dynamics compared to the F- +CH3 Cl and the F- +NH2 Cl SN 2 reactions: phosphorus as central atom leads to a more indirect SN 2 reaction with extensive complex-formation with respect to the carbon-centered one, however, the title reaction is more direct than its N-centered pair. Stereospecificity, characteristic at C-center, does not appear here either, due to the submerged front-side-attack retention path and the repeated entrance-channel inversional motion, whereas the multi-inversion mechanism discovered at nitrogen center is also undermined by the deep Walden-well. At low collision energies, 6 % of the PH2 F products form with retained configuration, mostly through complex-mediated mechanisms, while this ratio reaches 24 % at the highest energy due to the increasing dominance of the direct front-side mechanism and the smaller chance for hitting the deep Walden-inversion minimum. Our results suggest pronounced central-atom effects in SN 2 reactions, which can fundamentally change their (stereo)dynamics.

Partial Oxidation of Methane to Methanol by Using Molecular O2 on Pd2+ Catalyst: An Insight from Theory

AbstractThe partial oxidation of methane to methanol using cationic Pd2 dimers is investigated by employing density functional theory (DFT) method. We used B3PW91 functional for geometry optimization, and frequency calculations of all species involved in [Pd2]++O2+2CH4 reaction. Furthermore, a density‐fitting triple zeta valence with single‐polarization (def2TZVP) is used in the calculation to determine the atomic orbitals of the atoms. We oxidized Pd2+ to [Pd2O2]+ using O2 and performed possible partial oxidation of methane to methanol on [Pd2O2]+ and [Pd2O]+ and explored various intermediates and transition states on the potential energy surface (PES) diagram. From Potential Energy Surface (PES) analysis, it is found that the [Pd2O2]+ in doublet spin state multiplicity (SM=2) following radical mechanism is the more preferred pathway for methane to methanol conversion.

Vibrational Mode-Specific Dynamics of the OH + C2H6 Reaction.

We investigate the effects of the initial vibrational excitations on the dynamics of the OH + C2H6 → H2O + C2H5 reaction using the quasi-classical trajectory method and a full-dimensional analytical ab initio potential energy surface. Excitation of the initial CH, CC, and OH stretching modes enhances, slightly inhibits, and does not affect the reactivity, respectively. Translational energy activates the early-barrier title reaction more efficiently than OH and CC stretching excitations, in accord with the Polanyi rules whereas CH stretching modes have similar or higher efficacy than translation, showing that these rules are not always valid in polyatomic processes. Scattering angle, initial attack angle, and product translational energy distributions show the dominance of direct stripping with increasing collision energy, side-on OH and isotropic C2H6 attack preferences, and substantial reactant-product translational energy transfer without any significant mode specificity. The reactant vibrational excitation energy of OH and C2H6 flows into the H2O and C2H5 product vibrations, respectively, whereas product rotations are not affected. The computed mode-specific H2O vibrational distributions show that initial OH excitation appears in the asymmetric stretching vibration of the H2O product and allow comparison with experiments.

Structural, Spectroscopic, and Dynamic Properties of Li2+(X2∑g+) in Interaction with Krypton Atom.

We report a computational study of the potential energy surface (PES) and vibrational bound states for the ground electronic state of Li2+Kr. The PES was calculated in Jacobi coordinates at the Restricted Coupled Cluster method RCCSD(T) level of calculation and using aug-cc-pVnZ (n = 4 and 5) basis sets. Afterward, this PES is extrapolated to the complete basis set (CBS) limit for correction. The obtained interaction energies were, then, interpolated numerically using the reproducing kernel Hilbert space polynomial (RKHS) approach to produce analytic expressions for the 2D-PES. The analytical PES is used to solve the nuclear Schrodinger equation to determine the bound states' eigenvalues of Li2+Kr for a J = 0 total angular momentum configuration and to understand the effects of orientational anisotropy of the forces and the interplay between the repulsive and attractive interaction within the potential surface. In addition, the radial and angular distributions of some selected bound state levels, which lie below, around, and above the T-shaped 90° barrier well, are calculated and discussed. We note that the radial distributions clearly acquire a more complicated nodal structure and correspond to bending and stretching vibrational motions "mode" of the Kr atom along the radial coordinate, and the situation becomes very different at the highest bound states levels with energies higher than the T-shaped 90° barrier well. The shape of the distributions becomes even more complicated, with extended angular distributions and prominent differences between even and odd states.

Dynamics of C(3P) + OH(X 2Π) reaction on the new global HCO(X2A') potential energy surface.

A precise analytical potential energy surface (PES) of HCO(X2A') is fitted from a great quantity of abinitio energy points computed with the multi-reference configuration interaction method and aug-cc-pV(Q/5)Z basis sets. The whole energy points extrapolated to the complete basis set limit are fitted by the many-body expansion formula. The calculated topographic characteristics are analyzed and compared with the existing work to prove the precision of the present HCO(X2A') PES. By utilizing the time-dependent wave packet and quasi-classical trajectory methods, the reaction probabilities, integral cross sections, and rate constants are computed. The results are compared in detail with the former results carried out on the other PES. Moreover, the provided information on stereodynamics leads to an in-depth understanding of the role of collision energy in product distribution.

Exploring the versatile reactivity of the F- + SiH3Cl system on a full-dimensional coupled-cluster potential energy surface.

We develop a full-dimensional analytical potential energy surface (PES) for the F- + SiH3Cl reaction using Robosurfer for automatically sampling the configuration space, the robust [CCSD-F12b + BCCD(T) - BCCD]/aug-cc-pVTZ composite level of theory for computing the energy points, and the permutationally invariant polynomial method for fitting. Evolution of the fitting error and the percentage of the unphysical trajectories are monitored as a function of the iteration steps/number of energy points and polynomial order. Quasi-classical trajectory simulations on the new PES reveal rich dynamics resulting in high-probability SN2 (SiH3F + Cl-) and proton-transfer (SiH2Cl- + HF) products as well as several lower-probability channels, such as SiH2F- + HCl, SiH2FCl + H-, SiH2 + FHCl-, SiHFCl- + H2, SiHF + H2 + Cl-, and SiH2 + HF + Cl-. The Walden-inversion and front-side-attack-retention SN2 pathways are found to be competitive, producing nearly racemic products at high collision energies. The detailed atomic-level mechanisms of the various reaction pathways and channels as well as the accuracy of the analytical PES are analyzed along representative trajectories.

Dynamics of the Cl- + CH3I reaction on a high-level abinitio analytical potential energy surface.

We have developed a full-dimensional analytical abinitio potential energy surface (PES) for the Cl- + CH3I reaction using the Robosurfer program system. The energy points have been computed using a robust composite method defined as CCSD-F12b + BCCD(T) - BCCD with the aug-cc-pVTZ(-PP) basis set and have been fitted by the permutationally invariant polynomial approach. Quasi-classical trajectory simulations on the new PES reveal that two product channels are open in the collision energy (Ecoll) range of 1-80 kcal/mol, i.e., SN2 leading to I- + CH3Cl and iodine abstraction (above ∼45 kcal/mol) resulting in ICl- + CH3. Scattering angle, initial attack angle, product translational energy, and product internal energy distributions show that the SN2 reaction is indirect at low Ecoll and becomes direct-rebound-back-side (CH3-side) attack-type, as Ecoll increases. Iodine abstraction mainly proceeds with direct stripping mechanism with side-on/back-side attack preference. Comparison with crossed-beam experiments and previous direct dynamics simulations shows quantitative or qualitative agreement and also highlights possible theoretical and/or experimental issues motivating further research.

Toward a Rigorous Theoretical Description of Photocatalysis Using Realistic Models.

This Perspective aims at providing a road map to computational heterogeneous photocatalysis highlighting the knowledge needed to boost the design of efficient photocatalysts. A plausible computational framework is suggested focusing on static and dynamic properties of the relevant excited states as well of the involved chemistry for the reactions of interest. This road map calls for explicitly exploring the nature of the charge carriers, the excited-state potential energy surface, and its time evolution. Excited-state descriptors are introduced to locate and characterize the electrons and holes generated upon excitation. Nonadiabatic molecular dynamics simulations are proposed as a convenient tool to describe the time evolution of the photogenerated species and their propagation through the crystalline structure of photoactive material, ultimately providing information about the charge carrier lifetime. Finally, it is claimed that a detailed understanding of the mechanisms of heterogeneously photocatalyzed reactions demands the analysis of the excited-state potential energy surface.

Analytical potential energy surface and dynamics for the OH + CH3OH reaction.

Using as functional form a combination of valence bond and mechanic molecular terms a new full-dimensional potential energy surface was developed for the title reaction, named PES-2022, which was fitted to high-level ab initio calculations at the coupled-cluster singles, doubles, and perturbative triples-F12 explicitly correlated level on a representative number of points describing the reactive system. This surface simultaneously describes the two reaction channels, hydrogen abstraction from the methyl group [(R1) path] and from the alcohol group [(R2) path] of methanol to form water. PES-2022 is a smooth and continuous surface, which reasonably describes the topology of this reactive system from reactants to products, including the intermediate complexes present in the system. Based on PES-2022 an exhaustive dynamics study was performed using quasi-classical trajectory calculations under two different initial conditions: at a fixed room temperature, for direct comparison with the experimental evidence and at different collision energies, to analyze possible mechanisms of reaction. In the first case, the available energy was mostly deposited as water vibrational energy, with the vibrational population inverted in the stretching modes and not inverted in the bending modes, reproducing the experimental evidence. In the second case, the analysis of different dynamics magnitudes (excitation functions, product energy partitioning, and product scattering distributions), allows us to suggest different mechanisms for both (R1) and (R2) paths: a direct mechanism for the (R2) path vs an indirect one, related with "nearly trapped" trajectories in the intermediate complexes, for the (R1) path.

Theoretical Insights into the Luminescence and Sensing Mechanisms of N,N′-Bis(salicylidene)-[2-(3′,4′-diaminophenyl)benzthiazole] for Copper(II)

The intramolecular proton transfer (IPT) reaction potential energy surfaces (PESs) of N,N'-bis(salicylidene)-[2-(3',4'-diaminophenyl)benzthiazole] (BTS) in the S0 state and S1 state are constructed. It is found that the IPT reactions in the ground state hardly take place due to the high reaction energy barrier for single-proton (6.3 kcal/mol) and double-proton transfer (14.1 kcal/mol) reactions and low backward reaction energy barriers for single-proton (1.9 kcal/mol) and double-proton transfer (1.2 kcal/mol) reactions. In comparison, an excited-state intramolecular single-proton transfer reaction is a barrierless and exothermic process, and thus, single-proton transfer tautomer T1H contributes most to the fluorescence emission. Based on the analysis of PESs, the experimental absorption and emission spectra are reproduced well by the calculated vertical excitation energies of BTS and its photoisomerization products, and the triple fluorescence emission profile in the experiment is reassigned unequivocally. Furthermore, thermodynamic analysis of the BTS-Cu(II) complex shows that the dinuclear complex (C1) with Cu(II) coordinating with O and N atoms of the hydrogen bonds is the most thermodynamically stable structure, and the intramolecular hydrogen bonding structure in BTS is destroyed due to the chelation of Cu(II) and BTS; as a result, the IPT reaction of C1 in S0 and S1 states is significantly inhibited. The inhibitor of Cu(II) in the IPT reaction plays a major role in fluorescence quenching.

Different competition mechanism between ESPT and TICT process regulated by protic and aprotic solvent in DHP

In this study, we adopt density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory (DFT/TDDFT) methods to compare and analyze the disparate competing mechanisms of excited state proton transfer (ESPT) and twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) process of 2-(4′-diethylamino-2′-hydroxyphenyl)-1H-imidazo-[4,5-b] pyridine (DHP) in protic and aprotic solvent. The results show that the DHP molecule undergoes excited state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) in aprotic solvent ether. Differently, ESIPT is effectively inhibited in protic solvent methanol, whereas the coupling process of excited state double proton transfer (ESDPT) and TICT occurs. Combined with the analysis of potential energy surfaces, we clarify that DHP molecule in ether is more inclined to the channel of TICT → ESIPT → reverse TICT process to implement the ESIPT process. In DHP-MeOH complex, we confirm that the significant redshift phenomenon of fluorescence spectra observed in the experiment is attributed to the ESDPT induced TICT process. Our work offers a new avenue for switching ESPT and TICT competing mechanisms through protic and aprotic solvent, and considerably help the synthesis and development of highly efficient molecular photoswitch.

Interplay of Dual-Proton Transfer Relay to Achieve Full-Color Panel Luminescence in Excited-State Intramolecular Proton Transfer (ESIPT) Fluorophores.

A new design was applied for the facile synthesis of pure organic photoluminescent molecules with dual excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) sites. In this novel class of emitters, full-color panel emission from blue, green, and yellow to red, including white light, can be achieved in different solvents as modulated by the enol-keto(1st)-keto(2nd) tautomer emissions. A comprehensive transient photophysical study verifies that keto(1st) and keto(2nd) have a precursor (<0.8 ps)-successor (∼20 ps)-relayed absorbance relationship, and then a fast equilibrium between the two is established, resulting in dual emissions in the nanosecond scale (∼1900 ps). Through the research on copper ions' selective PL response, the dual-ESIPT mechanism was further verified; in addition, the study of solid-state PL changes upon the stimulus of organic vapor manifests the potential application sensitivity of the molecules as dual-ESIPT sensors. Theoretical results including reaction potential energy surface analyses manifest the fact that dual-proton transfer goes along a sequential route with a smaller energy barrier, firmly supporting the experimental results. An intrinsic system that undergoes intramolecular double proton relayed transfer is thus established for the achievement of much broadened optical responses and full-color display, providing reference for the design and application of advanced dual-ESIPT optical materials.

Uncovering the Mechanism of Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence in Coplanar Emitters Using Potential Energy Surface Analysis

Planarized emitters exhibiting thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) have attracted attention due to their narrow emission spectra, improved photostability, and high quantum yields, but with large singlet-triplet energy gaps (ΔEST) and no heavy atoms, the origin of their TADF remains a subject of debate. Here we prepare two isomeric, coplanar donor-acceptor compounds, with HMAT-2PYM performing dual TADF and room-temperature phosphorescence but with HMAT-4PYM exhibiting only prompt fluorescence. Although conventional TADF design principles suggest that neither isomer should exhibit TADF, we reveal differences in the excited state potential energy surfaces that enable spin-flip processes in only one isomer. We also find that hydrogen bonding is absent between the planar units of these emitters, despite earlier claims of intramolecular hydrogen bonding in similar compounds. Overall, this work demonstrates that potential energy surface analysis is a practical strategy for designing coplanar TADF materials that might otherwise be overlooked by conventional TADF design metrics.

Rotation‐Inversion Isomerization of Tertiary Carbamates: Potential Energy Surface Analysis of Multi‐Paths Isomerization Using Boltzmann Statistics

The front cover artwork is provided by Prof. Rainer Glaser's group at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. The image shows one of four potential energy surfaces generated from our rotation-inversion study of tertiary carbamates and highlights two of the eight possible transition state pathways between two ensembles of E- and Z-minima. In the context of synthetic studies of fluorinated carbamates R1 O-CO-N(R2 )CH2 CF3 , we unexpectedly observedtwosets of13 C NMR quartets for the CF3 group and we needed to understand their origin. Read the full text of the Research Article at 10.1002/cphc.2022005442.

An intramolecular vibrationally excited intermolecular potential energy surface and predicted 2OH overtone spectroscopy of H2O-Kr.

A new five-dimensional potential energy surface (PES) for H2O-Kr which explicitly includes the intramolecular 2OH overtone state of the H2O monomer is presented. The intermolecular potential energies were evaluated using explicitly correlated coupled cluster theory [CCSD(T)-F12] with a large basis set. Four vibrationally averaged analytical intermolecular PESs for H2O-Kr with H2O molecules in its |00+〉, |02+〉, |02-〉, and |11+〉 states are obtained by fitting to the multi-dimensional Morse/Long-Range potential function form. Each vibrationally averaged PES fitted to 578 points has root-mean-square (RMS) deviations smaller than 0.14 cm-1 and requires only 58 parameters. The combined radial discrete variable representation/angular finite basis representation method and the Lanczos algorithm were employed to calculate the rovibrational energy levels for |00+〉, |02+〉, |02-〉, and |11+〉 states of the H2O-Kr complexes. The calculated |02-〉Πf/e(101) ← |00+〉Σe(000) and |02+〉Πf/e(110) ← |00+〉Σe(101) infrared transitions are in excellent agreement with the experimental values with RMS discrepancies being only 0.007 and 0.016 cm-1, respectively. These analytical PESs can be used to provide reliable theoretical guidance for future infrared overtone spectroscopy of H2O-Kr.

Kinetics and dynamics study of the Cl(2P) + CH3OH reaction based on an analytical potential energy surface.

The reaction of chlorine atoms with methanol plays a central role in atmospheric and combustion processes and is a prototype of multi-channel reaction with two paths, HCl(v,j) + CH2OH (R1) and HCl(v,j) + CH3O (R2). In order to understand the kinetics and dynamics of the title reaction, using a valence-bond (VB) strategy we developed a new full-dimensional potential energy surface, named PES-2023, fitted to high-level ab initio calculations. Given that the (R2) path shows a noticeable barrier height, 12.7 kcal mol-1, while the (R1) path presents a submerged transition state with respect to the reactants, the latter is the kinetically favoured path on which most experimental kinetics and dynamics studies have focused. The PES-2023 surface presents a smooth and continuous behavior and is free of spurious features. Quasi-classical trajectory calculations were performed on this surface in order to shed light on the reaction kinetics and dynamics. The thermal rate constants in the temperature range 200-1000 K are practically independent of temperature, reproducing recent experimental evidence, although the experimental kinetics isotope effects are not well simulated. In the dynamics study the product distribution energy and the HCl(v,j) product roto-vibrational energy reasonably simulate the experimental data, where only the v = 0 and v = 1 vibrational states are populated, 80-20%, respectively. We found that both HCl(v) vibrational states present similar forward scattering distributions, associated with a stripping mechanism. This theoretical result contrasts with some of the previous experimental measurements. Finally, PES-2023 was compared with a recent and accurate full-dimensional surface based on a different strategy, a molecular orbital (MO) based surface, fitted to a very large number of ab initio points, concluding that both surfaces present similar behaviour, where some kinetics and dynamics properties are better reproduced by one surface and other properties by the other.

Vibrational mode-specific quasi-classical trajectory studies for the two-channel HI + C2H5 reaction.

We report a detailed dynamics study on the mode-specificity of the HI + C2H5 two-channel reaction (H-abstraction and I-abstraction), through performing quasi-classical trajectory computations on a recently developed high-level ab initio full-dimensional spin-orbit-corrected potential energy surface, by exciting four different vibrational modes of reactants at five collision energies. The effect of the normal-mode excitations on the reactivity, the mechanism, and the post-reaction energy flow is investigated. Both reaction pathways are intensely promoted when the HI-stretching mode is excited while the excitations imposed on C2H5 somewhat surprisingly inhibit the dominant H-abstraction reaction pathway. The enhancement effect of the excitation in the HI vibrational mode is found to be much more effective than increasing the translational energy, similar to the HBr + C2H5 reaction. Not like the Br-abstraction pathway, however, the I-abstraction reaction pathway could be comparable to the dominant H-abstraction reaction pathway. The dominance of the direct stripping mechanism is indicated in H-abstraction while the direct rebound mechanism is observed in I-abstraction. The H-abstraction is much pickier about the initial attack angle distributions for HI than I-abstraction is, which leads to a decrease in reactivity in the H-abstraction reaction pathway. The dominance of side-on CH3CH2 attack in I-abstraction is more obvious than in the case of H-abstraction. In the case of the H-abstraction reaction pathway, the major part of the initial translational energy ends up in translational recoil, while for I-abstraction most energy excites the product C2H5I.

Theoretical vibrational mode-specific dynamics studies for the HBr + C2H5 reaction.

A quasi-classical trajectory (QCT) study is performed for the HBr + C2H5 multi-channel reaction using a recently-developed high-level ab initio full-dimensional spin-orbit-corrected potential energy surface (PES) by exciting five different vibrational modes of reactants at five collision energies. The effect of the normal-mode excitations on the reactivity, the mechanism, and the post-reaction energy flow is followed. A significant decrease of the reactivity caused by the longer initial distances of the reactants for the vHBr = 1 reaction at low collision energy (Ecoll) is observed due to the intramolecular vibrational-energy redistribution and the classical nature of the QCT method. All of the three reaction pathways (H-abstraction, Br-abstraction, and H-exchange) are intensely promoted when the HBr-stretching mode is excited. No clear promotion is observed when excitation is imposed to C2H5 except that asymmetric CH-stretching helps the H-exchange process. The enhancement effect of the excitation in the HBr vibrational mode is found to be much more effective than increasing the translational energy, in contrast to the HBr + CH3 reaction. The forward scattering mechanism can be clearly promoted by the excitation of the HBr-stretching mode, or by the high collision energy, indicating the dominance of the direct stripping mechanism in these cases. At low collision energy with no excitation or excitation of any vibrational mode of C2H5, the forward scattering feature is less obvious. At Ecoll = 1 kcal mol-1, when HBr-stretching is excited, the product clearly gains more relative translational energy. However, it is interesting to see that when the excitation is in C2H5, the effect is the opposite, i.e., the product gains less relative translational energy compared to the ground-state reaction.