Features Of Potential Energy Surface Research Articles

Spin–orbit corrected potential energy surface features for the I (2P3/2) + H2O → HI + OH forward and reverse reactions

Using the CCSD(T) method with relativistic correlation consistent basis sets up to cc-pVQZ-PP, the entrance complex, transition state, and exit complex for the endothermic reaction I + H2O → HI + OH have been studied. The vibrational frequencies and the zero-point vibrational energies of the five stationary points for the title reaction are reported and compared with the limited available experimental results. Opposite to the valence isoelectronic F + H2O system, but similar to the Cl + H2O and Br + H2O reactions, the I + H2O reaction is endothermic, in this case by 46 kcal mol(-1). After the zero-point vibrational energy and spin-orbit coupling corrections, the endothermic reaction energy is predicted to be 48 kcal mol(-1), which agrees well with experimental values. For the reverse reaction HI + OH → I + H2O the transition state lies below the reactants, consistent with the experimental negative temperature dependence for the rate constants.

Communication: An accurate global potential energy surface for the ground electronic state of ozone

We report a new full-dimensional and global potential energy surface (PES) for the O + O2 → O3 ozone forming reaction based on explicitly correlated multireference configuration interaction (MRCI-F12) data. It extends our previous [R. Dawes, P. Lolur, J. Ma, and H. Guo, J. Chem. Phys. 135, 081102 (2011)] dynamically weighted multistate MRCI calculations of the asymptotic region which showed the widely found submerged reef along the minimum energy path to be the spurious result of an avoided crossing with an excited state. A spin-orbit correction was added and the PES tends asymptotically to the recently developed long-range electrostatic model of Lepers et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 137, 234305 (2012)]. This PES features: (1) excellent equilibrium structural parameters, (2) good agreement with experimental vibrational levels, (3) accurate dissociation energy, and (4) most-notably, a transition region without a spurious reef. The new PES is expected to allow insight into the still unresolved issues surrounding the kinetics, dynamics, and isotope signature of ozone.

Accurate double many-body expansion potential energy surface by extrapolation to the complete basis set limit and dynamics calculations for ground state of NH2

An accurate single-sheeted double many-body expansion potential energy surface is reported for the title system. A switching function formalism has been used to warrant the correct behavior at the H2(X1Σg+)+N(2D) and NH (X3Σ-)+H(2S) dissociation channels involving nitrogen in the ground N(4S) and first excited N(2D) states. The topographical features of the novel global potential energy surface are examined in detail, and found to be in good agreement with those calculated directly from the raw ab initio energies, as well as previous calculations available in the literature. The novel surface can be using to treat well the Renner-Teller degeneracy of the 12A″ and 12A' states of NH 2. Such a work can both be recommended for dynamics studies of the N(2D)+H2 reaction and as building blocks for constructing the double many-body expansion potential energy surface of larger nitrogen/hydrogen-containing systems. In turn, a test theoretical study of the reaction N(2D)+H2(X1Σg+)(ν=0,j=0)→NH (X3Σ-)+H(2S) has been carried out with the method of quantum wave packet on the new potential energy surface. Reaction probabilities, integral cross sections, and differential cross sections have been calculated. Threshold exists because of the energy barrier (68.5 meV) along the minimum energy path. On the curve of reaction probability for total angular momentum J = 0, there are two sharp peaks just above threshold. The value of integral cross section increases quickly from zero to maximum with the increase of collision energy, and then stays stable with small oscillations. The differential cross section result shows that the reaction is a typical forward and backward scatter in agreement with experimental measurement result.

New Potential Energy Surface Features for the Li + HF → LiF + H Reaction

The existing potential energy surfaces for the Li + HF system have been challenged by the experiments of Loesch, Stienkemeier, and co-workers. Here a very accurate potential energy surface has been obtained with rather rigorous theoretical methods. Methods up to full CCSDT have been pursued with basis sets as large as core correlated quintuple ζ. Reported here are the reactants, products, two transition states, and three intermediate complexes for this reaction. These reveal one previously undiscovered equilibrium geometry. The stationary point relative energies are very sensitive to level of theory. The reaction has a classical endothermicity of 2.6 kcal mol(-1). The complex Li···HF in the entrance valley lies 6.1 kcal/mol below the reactants. The expected transition state Li···H···F is bent with an angle of 72.2° and lies 4.5 kcal/mol above the reactants. The latter predicted classical barrier should be no more than one kcal/mol above the exact barrier. Not one but two product complexes lie 1.6 and 2.2 kcal/mol above reactants, respectively. Between the two product complexes, a second transition state, very broad, is found. The vibrational frequencies and zero-point vibrational energies (ZPVE) of all stationary points are reported, and significantly affect the relative energies.

Ab initiostudy of the influence of structural parameters on the potential energy surfaces of spin-crossover Fe(II) model compounds

In spin-crossover (SCO) compounds exhibiting a light induced excited spin state trapping (LIESST) effect, the thermodynamic T(1∕2) and kinetic T(LIESST) temperature values depend on the features of the potential energy surfaces (PES) of the two lowest singlet and quintet states but also on vibrational contributions, collective effects, such as electrostatics, for instance, spin-orbit couplings to a lesser extent, etc. In this work, the question of the link between the shape of the PES of SCO compounds exhibiting a LIESST effect and their first coordination sphere structure is addressed from wave function theory based ab initio calculations. Fe(II) complexes based on model ligands suited to reproduce the main characteristics of the PES of such compounds are distorted to emphasize selectively the role played by the metal-ligand distances and the ligand-metal-ligand angles. The studied angular deformations are those usually observed in many Fe(L)(2)(NCS)(2) complexes. It is shown that the larger the deformation between the low spin and high spin equilibrium geometries, the higher the energy barrier from the high spin state and the weaker the energy difference between the bottom of the wells. These results corroborate observations made by experimentalists on a large number of complexes. While the PES features only constitutes one of the contributions to these temperatures, it is worth noticing that, relating T(1∕2) to the energy difference between the bottoms of the singlet and quintet wells and the T(LIESST) to the energy barrier from the quintet bottom well, the same slope of the empirical law T(LIESST) = -0.3T(1∕2)+T(0) is observed.

Conical Intersection and Potential Energy Surface Features of a Model Retinal Chromophore: Comparison of EOM-CC and Multireference Methods.

This work investigates the performance of equation-of-motion coupled-cluster (EOM-CC) methods for describing the changes in the potential energy surfaces of the penta-2,4-dieniminium cation, a reduced model of the retinal chromophore of visual pigments, due to dynamical electron correlation effects. The ground-state wave function of this model includes charge-transfer and diradical configurations whose weights vary along different displacements and are rapidly changing at the conical intersection between the ground and the first excited states, making the shape of the potential energy surface sensitive to a balanced description of nondynamical and dynamical correlation. Recently, variational (MRCISD) and perturbative (MRPT2) approaches for including dynamical correlation in CASSCF-based calculations were tested along three representative ground state paths. Here, we use the same three paths to compare the performance of single-reference EOM-CC methods against MRCISD and MRCISD+Q. We find that the spin-flip variant of EOM-CCSD with perturbative inclusion of triple excitations (dT or fT) produces potential energy profiles of the two lowest electronic states in quantitative agreement with MRCISD+Q (our highest-quality reference method). The nonparallelity errors and differences in vertical energy differences of the two surfaces along these scans are less than 1.4 kcal/mol (EOM-SF-CCSD(dT) versus MRCISD+Q). For comparison, the largest error of MRCISD versus MRCISD+Q is 1.7 kcal/mol. Our results show that the EOM-CC methods provide an alternative to multireference approaches and may be used to study photochemical systems like the one used in this work.

Ultraviolet photodissociation dynamics of trichloroethylene at 235 nm

The photodissociation dynamics of trichloroethylene was investigated near 235 nm, (π,π*) transition, by detecting the nascent products, Cl (2P3/2) and Cl* (2P1/2), via 2 + 1 resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization. The photofragment speed distribution, the recoil anisotropy parameter β and the spin–orbit branching ratio for chlorine atom elimination channels were determined from time of flight profiles in polarization experiments. Based on the dynamical information, the features of potential energy surface along the reaction coordinate were discussed.

Insights into mechanistic photodissociation of chloroacetone from a combination of electronic structure calculation and molecular dynamics simulation

The stationary and intersection structures on the S(0) and S(1) potential energy surfaces of CH(3)COCH(2)Cl have been determined by the CAS(10,8)/cc-pVDZ optimizations and their relative energies are refined by the CASPT2//CAS(10,8)/cc-pVDZ single-point calculations. Non-adiabatic molecular dynamics simulations were performed on the basis of the state-averaged CAS(10,8)/cc-pVDZ calculated energies, energy gradients, and Hessian matrix for the S(0) and S(1) states. It is found that the features of the S(1) potential energy surface and non-adiabatic effect control the selectivity of the two α-C-C bond fissions, which provides a reasonable explanation why one α-C-C bond was observed as a primary channel and the other is ruled out even if CH(3)COCH(2)Cl is excited at 193 nm. The β-C-Cl fission is determined to be a dominant channel once the CH(3)COCH(2)Cl molecule is excited to the S(1) state and the β-C-Cl:α-C-C branching ratio is estimated by the RRKM rate theory to be 15:1 at 193 nm, which is overestimated in comparison with the value of ~11:1 inferred experimentally. The present calculation reveals that the α-C-C fission might take place in the ground electronic state as a result of the S(1) → S(0) internal conversion upon photolysis at 308 nm. However, the measured kinetic energy distributions of the α-C-C fission products suggest that the fission does not involve internal conversion to the ground state. To solve this issue, we need to perform non-adiabatic quantum dynamics simulation on accurate S(0), S(1), and S(2) potential energy surfaces, which is still a challenging task currently.

IR Spectra of C2H5+-N2 Isomers: Evidence for Dative Chemical Bonding in the Isolated Ethanediazonium Ion

The potential energy surface (PES) of C(2)H(5)(+)-N(2) is characterized in detail by infrared photodissociation (IRPD) spectroscopy of mass-selected ions in a quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer and ab initio calculations at the MP2/6-311G(2df,2pd) level. The PES features three nonequivalent minima. Two local minima, 1-N(2)(H) and 1-N(2)(C), are adduct complexes with binding energies of D(0) = 18 and 12 kJ/mol, in which the N(2) ligand is weakly bonded by electrostatic forces to either the acidic proton or the electrophilic carbon atom of the nonclassical C(2)H(5)(+) ion (1), respectively. The global minimum 3 is the ethanediazonium ion, featuring a weak dative bond of D(0) = 38 kJ/mol. This interaction strength is sufficient to switch the C(2)H(5)(+) structure from nonclassical to classical. The 1-N(2)(C) isomer corresponds to the entrance channel complex for addition of N(2) to 1 yielding the product 3. This reaction involves a small barrier of 7 kJ/mol as a result of the rearrangement of the C(2)H(5)(+) ion. The partly rotationally resolved IRPD spectrum of C(2)H(5)(+)-N(2) recorded in the C-H stretch range is dominated by four bands assigned to 3 and one weak transition attributed to 1-N(2)(H). The abundance ratio of 1-N(2)(H) and 3 estimated from the IRPD spectrum as ∼1% is consistent with the calculated free energy difference of 12 kJ/mol. As the ethanediazonium ion escaped previous mass spectrometric detection, the currently accepted value for the ethyl cation affinity of N(2) is revised from -ΔH(0) = 15.5 ± 1.5 to ∼42 kJ/mol. The first experimental identification and characterization of 3 provides a sensitive probe of the electrophilic character and fluxionality of the ethyl cation. Comparison of 3 with related alkanediazonium ions reveals the drastic effect of the size of the alkyl chain on their chemical reactivity, which is relevant in the context of hydrocarbon plasma chemistry of planetary atmospheres and the interstellar medium, as well as alkylation reactions of (bio)organic molecules (e.g., carcinogenesis and mutagenesis of DNA material).

New ab initio potential energy surface and quantum dynamics of the reaction H(2S) + NH(X3Σ−) → N(4S) + H2

A new global potential energy surface is reported for the ground state ((4)A(")) of the reaction H((2)S) + NH(X(3)Σ(-)) → N((4)S) + H(2) from a set of accurate ab initio data, which were computed using the multi-reference configuration interaction with a basis set of aug-cc-pV5Z. The many-body expansion and neural network methods have been used to construct the new potential energy surface. The topographical features of the new global potential energy surface are presented. The predicted barrier height is lower than previous theoretical estimates and the heat of reaction with zero-point energy is closer to experimental results. The quantum reactive scattering dynamics calculation was carried out over a range of collision energies (0-1.0 eV) on the new potential energy surface. The reaction probabilities, integral cross-section, and rate constants for the title reaction were calculated. The calculated rate constants are in excellent agreement with the available experimental results.

ChemInform Abstract: Theory, Experiment and Unusual Features of Potential Energy Surfaces of Pericyclic and Pseudopericyclic Reactions with Sequential Transition Structures

AbstractReview: 69 refs.

Modeling proton transfer to charged silver electrodes

Density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) techniques are used to study proton transfer from an aqueous solution to an Ag(1 1 1) surface. DFT is applied to study Ag–water and Ag–hydronium interactions as well as proton transfer for small systems based on the cluster model. The data gained are then used to adjust an empirical Ag–water interaction potential and to reparametrize an empirical valence-bond (EVB) model, which has been successfully applied for the study of proton transfer to a Pt(1 1 1) surface before. Employing these force fields in MD simulations enables dynamic modeling of the electrolyte–metal interface on a scale large enough to give realistic results. Results from a MD trajectory study on Ag(1 1 1) are reported and compared to the analogous study for platinum. Low discharge rates on Ag(1 1 1) are observed, and the potential range for hydrogen evolution can be estimated. The different behavior relative to Pt(1 1 1) can be traced to features of the respective potential energy surfaces and to the different structural properties of the aqueous/metallic interfaces.

Theory, Experiment and Unusual Features of Potential Energy Surfaces of Pericyclic and Pseudopericyclic Reactions with Sequential Transition Structures

Theory, Experiment and Unusual Features of Potential Energy Surfaces of Pericyclic and Pseudopericyclic Reactions with Sequential Transition Structures

Accurate Potential Energy Surface for the 12A′ State of NH2: Scaling of External Correlation Versus Extrapolation to the Complete Basis Set Limit

An accurate single-sheeted double many-body expansion potential energy surface is reported for the title system which is suitable for dynamics and kinetics studies of the reactions of N(2D) + H2(X1Sigmag+) NH(a1Delta) + H(2S) and their isotopomeric variants. It is obtained by fitting ab initio energies calculated at the multireference configuration interaction level with the aug-cc-pVQZ basis set, after slightly correcting semiempirically the dynamical correlation using the double many-body expansion-scaled external correlation method. The function so obtained is compared in detail with a potential energy surface of the same family obtained by extrapolating the calculated raw energies to the complete basis set limit. The topographical features of the novel global potential energy surface are examined in detail and found to be in general good agreement with those calculated directly from the raw ab initio energies, as well as previous calculations available in the literature. The novel function has been built so as to become degenerate at linear geometries with the ground-state potential energy surface of A'' symmetry reported by our group, where both form a Renner-Teller pair.

Ab initio Based DMBE Potential Energy Surface for the Ground Electronic State of the C2H Molecule

We report a single-sheeted potential energy surface for the lowest state of C(2)H using double many-body expansion theory and accurate ab initio data points calculated at MRCI/AVQZ level of theory. The topographical features of the new global potential energy surface are analyzed in detail.

Exploring the Conformational Space for the Interactions of Aromatic Residue Analogs with Biologically Important Saccharides

Proteins interacting with carbohydrate ligands are getting a great deal of attention because of its important role in various biological processes. The crystal structures of several lectin-saccharide complexes have shown the presence of an aromatic residue in the binding site. The C-H hydrophobic patch of saccharide “stacks” against pi-cloud of aromatic residues forming CH-pi interactions, which are governed by dispersive and charge transfer interactions. The energetics of saccharide - aromatic residue interactions are dictated by their mutual position-orientations. It is conceivable that there exist low-energy position-orientations other than those found in the limited number of crystal structures of protein-carbohydrate complexes known to date. Hence, we have explored the conformational space for the interactions of 3-methylindole (3-MeIn), p-hydroxytoluene (p-OHTol) and toluene (Tol) (analogs of tryptophan, tyrosine and phenylalanine, respectively) with six saccharides. A Monte Carlo conformational search method was used to explore the features of the molecular potential energy surfaces. We found that the saccharides are densely populated above and below the pi-cloud of the aromatic ring of the amino acid residue but not along the edges. Clustering of conformers indicate the aromatic residues are spread out when interacting with C-H atoms as compared to that with -OH groups. The saccharides were capable of sliding on the surface of the aromatic residue. Four C-H groups can simultaneously participate in CH-pi interaction in 3-MeIn systems owing to its larger surface area. The β-D-Galactose and β-L-Fucose have been found to interact only through their b- and a-faces, respectively. Our ability to understand molecular flexibility through conformational search will further lead to advances in the design of drugs and to understand the advantages of selective choice of aromatic residues viz., tryptophan, tyrosine or phenylalanine in different carbohydrate binding proteins.

Accurate ab initio double many-body expansion potential energy surface for ground-state H2S by extrapolation to the complete basis set limit

A single-sheeted potential energy surface is reported for the electronic ground-state of H(2)S by fitting accurate multireference configuration interaction energies calculated using aug-cc-pVTZ and aug-cc-pVQZ basis sets with extrapolation of the electron correlation energy to the complete basis set limit, plus extrapolation to the complete basis set limit of the complete-active-space self-consistent field energy. A switching function formalism has been used to warrant the correct behavior at the H(2)(X (1)Sigma(g) (+))+S((1)D) and SH(X (2)Pi)+H((2)S) dissociation limits. The topographical features of the novel global potential energy surface are examined in detail, with the former being used for exploratory quasiclassical trajectory calculations of the thermal rate constant for the S((1)D)+H(2), S((1)D)+D(2), and S((1)D)+HD reactions at room temperature. A comparison with other available potential energy surfaces as well as kinetics data is also provided.

Accurate Double Many-Body Expansion Potential Energy Surface for the Lowest Singlet State of Methylene

A single-sheeted double many-body expansion potential energy surface is reported for ground-state CH(2) by fitting accurate ab initio energies that have been semiempirically corrected by the double many-body-expansion scaled-external-correlation method. The energies of about 2500 geometries have been calculated using the multireference configuration interaction method, with the single diffusely corrected aug-cc-pVQZ basis set of Dunning and the full valence complete active space wave function as reference. The topographical features of the novel global potential energy surface are examined and compared with other potential energy surfaces.

A Unified Perspective on the Hydrogen Atom Transfer and Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer Mechanisms in Terms of Topographic Features of the Ground and Excited Potential Energy Surfaces As Exemplified by the Reaction between Phenol and Radicals

The relation between the hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) and proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) mechanisms is discussed and is illustrated by multiconfigurational electronic structure calculations on the ArOH + R(*) --> ArO(*) + RH reactions. The key topographic features of the Born-Oppenheimer potential energy surfaces that determine the predominant reaction mechanism are the conical intersection seam of the two lowest states and reaction saddle points located on the shoulders of this seam. The saddle point corresponds to a crossing of two interacting valence bond states corresponding to the reactant and product bonding patterns, and the conical intersection corresponds to the noninteracting intersection of the same two diabatic states. The locations of mechanistically relevant conical intersection structures and relevant saddle point structures are presented for the reactions between phenol and the N- and O-centered radicals, (*)NH2 and (*)OOCH3. Points on the conical intersection of the ground doublet D0 and first excited doublet D1 states are found to be in close geometric and energetic proximity to the reaction saddle points. In such systems, either the HAT mechanism or both the HAT mechanism and the proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) mechanism can take place, depending on the relative energetic accessibility of the reaction saddle points and the D0/D1 conical intersection seams. The discussion shows how the two mechanisms are related and how they blend into each other along intermediate reaction paths. The recognition that the saddle point governing the HAT mechanism is on the shoulder of the conical intersection governing the PCET mechanism is used to provide a unified view of the competition between the two mechanisms (and the blending of the two mechanisms) in terms of the prominent and connected features of the potential energy surface, namely the saddle point and the conical intersection. The character of the dual mechanism may be understood in terms of the dominant valence bond configurations of the intersecting states, which are zero-order approximations to the diabatic states.

Accurate DMBE Potential Energy Surface For the N(2D) + H2(1Σ g + ) Reaction Using an Improved Switching Function Formalism

A single-sheeted double many-body expansion (DMBE) potential energy surface is reported for the 1 2 A′′ state of NH2. To approximate its true multi-sheeted nature, a novel switching function that imposes the correct behavior at the H2(X 1Σ + )+ N(2 D) and NH(X 3Σ-) + H(2 S) dissociation limits has been suggested. The new DMBE form is shown to fit with high accuracy an extensive set of new ab initio points (calculated at the multi-reference configuration interaction level using the full valence complete active space as reference and aug-cc-pVQZ and aug-cc-pV5Z basis sets) that have been semiempirically corrected at the valence regions by scaling the n-body dynamical correlation terms such as to account for the finite basis set size and truncated configuration interaction expansion. A detailed study of the N(2 D) ... H2(X 1Σ + ) van der Waals region has also been carried out. These calculations predict a nearly free rigid-rotor with two shallow van der Waals wells of C 2v and C ∞ v symmetries. Such a result contrasts with previous cc-pVTZ calculations which predict a single T-shaped van der Waals structure. Except in the vicinity of the crossing seam, which is replaced by an avoided intersection, the fit shows the correct physical behavior over the entire configurational space. The topographical features of the new DMBE potential energy surface are examined in detail and compared with those of other potential functions available in the literature. Amongst such features, we highlight the barrier for linearization (11,802 cm-1) which is found to overestimate the most recent empirical spectroscopic estimate by only 28 cm-1. Additionally, the T-shaped N(2 D) ... H2 van der Waals minimum is predicted to have a well depth of 90 cm-1, being 11 cm-1 deeper than the C ∞ v minimum. The title DMBE form is therefore recommendable for dynamics studies of both non-reactive and reactive N(2 D)+H2 collisions.