Quadrupole Coupling Constants Research Articles

Local Electronic Structure in γ-LiAlO2 Studied by Single-Crystal 27Al NMR and DFT Calculations.

From single-crystal 27Al NMR experiments, the full tensors for both the electrical field gradient (EFG) and the chemical shift (CS) for the aluminum atoms in γ-LiAlO2 have been determined. A simultaneous fit of the quadrupolar splittings observed for the four 27Al in the unit cell gave the EFG tensor in the crystal frame, from which a quadrupolar coupling constant of χ = CQ = 3.330 ± 0.005 MHz and an asymmetry parameter of ηQ = 0.656 ± 0.002 were derived. The experimentally determined quadrupolar splittings were sufficiently sensitive to quantify small deviations of both rotation axis direction and starting direction by the data fitting routine. For determination of the CS tensor, the evolution of the outer satellite centers over the crystal rotation was tracked, and the contribution of the quadrupolar shift was subtracted according to the previously determined EFG tensor. The resulting CS tensor of 27Al yields an isotropic chemical shift of δiso = 81.8 ± 0.25 ppm and an asymmetry parameter of ηCS = 0.532 ± 0.004, in good agreement with the fit of a MAS NMR spectrum acquired at B0 = 21.1 T. From both experiments and DFT calculations using the Castep code, we find the eigenvectors of the EFG and CS tensors to be practically colinear.

The strengthening effect of a hydrogen or lithium bond on the Z···N aerogen bond (Z = Ar, Kr and Xe): a comparative study

ABSTRACTAn ab initio study is performed on O3Z···NCM···NCX (Z = Ar, Kr and Xe; M = H and Li; X = H, F and CH3) complexes to investigate cooperativity effects between aerogen and hydrogen or lithium bonding interactions in these systems. To understand the cooperative effects, a detailed analysis of the binding distances, interaction energies and bonding properties is performed on these complexes. The results indicate that all Z···N and H/Li···N binding distances in the ternary complexes are shorter than those of corresponding binary systems. For a given M or X, cooperative energies increase as Z = Xe > Kr > Ar. Moreover, O3Z···NCLi···NCX complexes exhibit a larger cooperative energy than O3Z···NCH···NCX ones. The non-covalent interaction (NCI) index analysis indicates that the formation of an H/Li···N interaction in the ternary complexes shifts the location of the spike associated with the Z···N interaction towards the negative λ2ρ values. This indicates that NCI analysis can be regarded as a useful tool for the study of cooperative effects between two different non-covalent interactions. Also, cooperative effects in O3Z···NCM···NCX complexes make a decrease in 14N nuclear quadrupole coupling constants of NCH or NCLi molecule.

A Study of 2-Iodobutane by Rotational Spectroscopy.

Rotational transitions belonging to 2-iodobutane (sec-butyl-iodide, CH3CHICH2CH3) were measured over the frequency range 5.5-16.5 GHz via jet-pulsed Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy. The complete nuclear quadrupole coupling tensor of iodine, χ, was obtained for the gauche (g)-, anti (a)-, and gauche' (g')-conformers as well as the four (13)C isotopologues of the gauche species. Rotational constants, centrifugal distortion constants, quadrupole coupling constants, and nuclear spin-rotation constants were determined for each species. Changes in χ of the iodine nucleus, resulting from conformational and isotopic differences, are discussed. Isotopic substitution of g-2-iodobutane allowed for an rs structure to be determined for the carbon backbone. Additionally, isotopic substitution in conjunction with an ab initio structure allowed for a fit of various r0 structural parameters belonging to g-2-iodobutane.

Accurate determination of the nuclear quadrupole moment of xenon from the molecular method

This study provides a new determination of the nuclear electric quadrupole moment (NQM) for 131Xe, which is achieved by the molecular method. Dirac-Coulomb Coupled Cluster calculations with a Gaunt correction (DC+G-CC) of electric field gradients (EFGs) and experimental nuclear quadrupole coupling constants of six molecular systems (XeH+, XeCuF, XeCuCl, XeAgF, XeAgCl and XeAuF) were considered. The best NQM obtained by our DC+G-CCSD-T EFGs was −114.6(1.1) mbarn, which is recommended as the new reference value for this nuclide given the high level electron structure calculations done here.

(17)O NMR Investigation of Water Structure and Dynamics.

The structure and dynamics of the bound water in barium chlorate monohydrate were studied with (17)O nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy in samples that are stationary and spinning at the magic-angle in magnetic fields ranging from 14.1 to 21.1 T. (17)O NMR parameters of the water were determined, and the effects of torsional oscillations of the water molecule on the (17)O quadrupolar coupling constant (CQ) were delineated with variable temperature MAS NMR. With decreasing temperature and reduction of the librational motion, we observe an increase in the experimentally measured CQ explaining the discrepancy between experiments and predictions from density functional theory. In addition, at low temperatures and in the absence of (1)H decoupling, we observe a well-resolved (1)H-(17)O dipole splitting in the spectra, which provides information on the structure of the H2O molecule. The splitting arises because of the homogeneous nature of the coupling between the two (1)H-(17)O dipoles and the (1)H-(1)H dipole.

Microwave spectrum of 1-bromobutane

The rotational spectrum of 1-bromobutane has been measured in the range of 8–18GHz using a 480MHz bandwidth chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave (CP-FTMW) spectrometer. 1-bromobutane has five conformers; aa, ag, ga, gg, gg′. Spectra for the 79Br isotopic species and 81Br isotopic species were observed and assigned for the three lowest energy conformers, aa, ga, and gg. Consequentially, the rotational constants, nuclear quadrupole coupling constants, and centrifugal distortion constants were determined and the dipole moment of the aa conformer with 79Br was measured. All the experimental data are in good agreement with the ab initio calculations.

ChemInform Abstract: Recent Advances in Application of 27Al NMR Spectroscopy to Materials Science

AbstractReview: 261 refs.

Two Conformers of N,N-Diethylpropionamide As Observed by Microwave Spectroscopy and Quantum Chemistry.

The microwave spectra of two conformers of N,N-diethylpropionamide were recorded using a molecular beam Fourier transform microwave spectrometer operating in the frequency range 2-26.5 GHz. Hyperfine splittings arising from the (14)N quadrupole coupling effect were observed and analyzed. Fits using a rigid rotor model with centrifugal distortion correction and first-order perturbation approach for the quadrupole coupling yielded highly accurate molecular parameters and standard deviations within the measurement accuracy for both conformers. Complementary quantum chemical calculations were carried out for a conformational analysis, theoretical values of the spectroscopic constants, and the (14)N nuclear quadrupole coupling constants.

Conformers of Gaseous Serine.

The myriad conformers of the neutral form of natural amino acid serine (Ser) have been investigated by systematic computations with reliable electronic wave function methods. A total of 85 unique conformers were located using the MP2/cc-pVTZ level of theory. The 12 lowest-energy conformers of serine fall within a 8 kJ mol(-1) window, and for these species, geometric structures, precise relative energies, equilibrium and vibrationally averaged rotational constants, anharmonic vibrational frequencies, infrared intensities, quartic and sextic centrifugal distortion constants, dipole moments, and (14)N nuclear quadrupole coupling constants were computed. The relative energies were refined through composite focal-point analyses employing basis sets as large as aug-cc-pV5Z and correlation treatments through CCSD(T). The rotational constants for seven conformers measured by Fourier-transform microwave spectroscopy are in good agreement with the vibrationally averaged rotational constants computed in this study. Our anharmonic vibrational frequencies are compared to the large number of experimental vibrational absorptions attributable to at least six conformers.

A theoretical study on the characteristics of the intermolecular interactions in the active site of human androsterone sulphotransferase: DFT calculations of NQR and NMR parameters and QTAIM analysis

A theoretical study at the level of density functional theory (DFT) was performed to characterize noncovalent intermolecular interactions, especially hydrogen bond interactions, in the active site of enzyme human androsterone sulphotransferase (SULT2A1/ADT). Geometry optimization, interaction energy, 2H, 14N, and 17O electric field gradient (EFG) tensors, 1H, 13C, 17O, and 15N chemical shielding (CS) tensors, Natural Bonding Orbital (NBO) analysis, and quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) analysis of this active site were investigated. It was found that androsterone (ADT) is able to form hydrogen bonds with residues Ser80, Ile82, and His99 of the active site. The interaction energy calculations and NBO analysis revealed that the ADT molecule forms the strongest hydrogen bond with Ser80. Results revealed that ADT interacts with the other residues through electrostatic and Van der Waals interactions. Results showed that these hydrogen bonds influence on the calculated 2H, 14N, and 17O quadrupole coupling constants (QCCs), as well as 1H, 13C, 17O, and 15N CS tensors. The magnitude of the QCC and CS changes at each nucleus depends directly on its amount of contribution to the hydrogen bond interaction.

DFT explorations of quadrupole coupling constants for planar 5-fluorouracil pairs

Atomic scale properties of quadrupole coupling constants (CQ) have been evaluated for singular and paired 5-fluorouracil (FU) models. Structural possibilities and properties for various types of hydrogen bonded (HB) homo pairs of FU have been investigated based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The models have been optimized to obtain the minimum energy level structures and only the planar molecular pairs have been considered. Various types of HB interactions have also managed the molecular shapes for the FU pairs. Different types of energies and also electron transferring properties have been investigated by the evaluated optimized properties. The atomic scale results indicated different strengths of HB interactions for FU pairs according to the changes of CQ properties for atoms in the singular and paired systems depending on the strength of interactions.

35Cl Solid-State NMR and Computational Study of Chlorine Halogen Bond Donors in Single-Component Crystalline Chloronitriles

Halogen bonding is a noncovalent interaction between the electrophilic region of a halogen (σ-hole) and an electron donor, which has gained popularity in the field of crystal engineering due to its strength and linearity. Here, we present a 35Cl solid-state NMR study of chlorine atoms as halogen bond donors, with interpretation aided by crystallographic symmetry and computational chemistry. In a series of chlorinated benzonitrile compounds, the magnitude of the 35Cl quadrupolar coupling constant (CQ) was found to increase, and the quadrupolar asymmetry parameter (η) was found to decrease upon halogen bonding. A natural localized molecular orbital (NLMO) analysis attributes these changes to an increase in the contribution from the lone pair NLMOs to |CQ|. This is distinguished from a short proton-chlorine contact, which causes an increase in the magnitude of the σ-bond contribution and a decrease in the lone pair contribution, resulting in an overall decrease in |CQ|. This first direct 35Cl solid-state NMR...

Probing the Electronic Environment of Methylindoles using Internal Rotation and (14)N Nuclear Quadrupole Coupling.

High-resolution rotational spectra were recorded in the 10.5-21.0 GHz frequency range for seven singly methylated indoles. (14)N nuclear quadrupole hyperfine structure and spectral splittings arising from tunneling along the internal rotation of the methyl group were resolved for all indole species. The nuclear quadrupole coupling constants were used to characterize the electronic environment of the nitrogen atom, and the program XIAM was used to fit the barrier to internal rotation to the measured transition frequencies. The best fit barriers were found to be 277.1(2), 374.32(4), 414.(5), 331.6(2), 126.8675(15), 121.413(4), and 426(3) cm(-1) for 1-methylindole through 7-methylindole, respectively. The fitted barriers were found to be in good agreement with barriers calculated at the ωB97XD/6-311++G(d,p) level. The complete set of experimental barriers is compared to theoretical investigations of the origins of methyl torsional barriers and confirms that the magnitude of these barriers is an overall effect of individual hyperconjugative and structural interactions of many bonding/antibonding orbitals.

Nuclear Quadrupole Resonance Study of Proton and Deuteron Migration in Short Strong Hydrogen Bonds Formed in Molecular Complex 3,5-Dinitrobenzoic Acid–Nicotinic Acid and in Deuterated 3,5-Pyridinedicarboxylic Acid

Temperature dependences of the 14N nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) frequencies have been measured in molecular complex 3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid–nicotinic acid (35DBNA) and in deuterated 3,5-pyridinedicarboxylic acid (DPDA). In deuterated DPDA, the temperature dependences of the deuterium quadrupole coupling constants and asymmetry parameters η have also been measured. In 35DBNA, the magnitude of the quadrupole coupling constant of the pyridine nitrogen agrees with the experimentally observed proton transfer. No proton exchange (O–H···N ↔ O–···H–N+) is observed. The temperature dependence of the 14N quadrupole coupling constant is analyzed in a model of a resonance hybrid of two extreme electron configurations of the molecules. The energy difference of the two extreme electron configurations is determined. In the same model, we analyzed previously published 14N NQR data of the NHO hydrogen bond in nondeuterated 3,5-pyridinedicarboxylic acid. The 14N NQR data in DPDA show the presence of a quasi-continuou...

A study of hydrogen bond effects on the oxygen, nitrogen, and hydrogen electric field gradient tensors in the active site of human dehydroepiandrosterone sulphotransferase: A density-functional theory based treatment

An investigation of the density functional theory (DFT) was carried out to study the effects of the hydrogen bond (HB) interactions on 2H, 14N, and 17O electric field gradient (EFG) tensors in the active site of human dehydroepiandrosterone sulphotransferase (SULT2A1/DHEA). Natural Bonding Orbital (NBO) analysis was also performed on this active site. The results revealed that the magnitude of the quadrupole coupling constant (QCC) change at each nucleus directly depends on its contribution amount to the HB interaction.

Synthesis of Pyridine– and Pyrazine–BF3 Complexes and Their Characterization in Solution and Solid State

Following the discovery of the redox-active 1,4-bis-BF3-quinoxaline complex, we undertook a structure–activity study with the objective to understand the active nature of the quinoxaline complex. Through systematic synthesis and characterization, we have compared complexes prepared from pyridine and pyrazine derivatives, as heterocyclic core analogues. This paper reports the structural requirements that give rise to the electrochemical features of the 1,4-bis-BF3-quinoxaline adduct. Using solution and solid-state NMR spectroscopy, the role of aromatic ring fusion and nitrogen incorporation in bonding and electronics was elucidated. We establish the boron atom location and its interaction with its environment from 1D and 2D solution NMR, X-ray diffraction analysis, and 11B solid-state NMR experiments. Crystallographic analysis of single crystals helped to correlate the boron geometry with 11B quadrupolar coupling constant (CQ) and asymmetry parameter (ηQ), extracted from 11B solid-state NMR spectra. Additi...

Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics Simulations and GIPAW NMR Calculations of a Lithium Borate Glass Melt.

The atomic structure of a molten 0.3Li2O-0.7B2O3 glass at 1250 K was investigated using ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations. The gauge including projector augmented wave (GIPAW) method was then employed for computing the chemical shift and quadrupolar coupling constant of (11)B, (17)O, and (7)Li from 764 AIMD derived structures. The chemical shift and quadrupolar coupling constant distributions were directly estimated from the dynamical structure of the molten glass. (11)B NMR parameters of well-known structural units such as the three-coordinated ring, nonring, and four-coordinated tetrahedron were found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. In this study, more detailed classification of B units was presented based on the number of O species bonded to the B atoms. This highlights the limitations of (11)B NMR sensitivity for resolving (11)B local environment using the experimentally obtained spectra only. The (17)O NMR parameter distributions can theoretically resolve the bridging and nonbridging O atoms with different structural units such as nonring, single boroxol ring, and double boroxol ring. Slight but clear differences in the number of bridging O atoms surrounding Li that have not been reported experimentally were observed in the theoretically obtained (7)Li NMR parameters.

Microwave spectra, molecular structure, and aromatic character of 4a,8a-azaboranaphthalene.

The microwave spectra for seven unique isotopologues of 4a,8a-azaboranaphthalene [hereafter referred to as BN-naphthalene] were measured using a pulsed-beam Fourier transform microwave spectrometer. Spectra were obtained for the normal isotopologues with (10)B, (11)B, and all unique single (13)C and the (15)N isotopologue (with (11)B), in natural abundance. The rotational, centrifugal distortion and quadrupole coupling constants determined for the (11)B(14)N isotopologue are A = 3042.712 75(43) MHz, B = 1202.706 57(35) MHz, C = 862.220 13(35) MHz, DJ = 0.06(1) kHz, 1.5χaa ((14)N) = 2.5781(61) MHz, 0.25(χbb - χcc) ((14)N) = - 0.1185(17) MHz, 1.5χaa (11B) = - 3.9221(75) MHz, and 0.25(χbb - χcc) ((11)B) = - 0.9069(24) MHz. The experimental inertial defect is Δ = - 0.159 amu Å(2), which is consistent with a planar structure for the molecule. The B-N bond length from the experimentally determined structure is 1.47 Å, which indicates π-bonding character between the B and N. The measured quadrupole coupling strengths provide important and useful information about the bonding, orbital occupancy, and aromatic character for this aromatic molecule. Extended Townes-Dailey analyses were used to determine the B and N electron sp(2)-hybridized and p-orbital occupations. These results are compared with electron orbital occupations from the natural bond orbital option in theoretical calculations. From the analyses, it was determined that BN-naphthalene has aromatic character similar to that of other N-containing aromatics. The results are compared with similar results for B-N bonding in 1,2-dihydro-1,2-azaborine and BN-cyclohexene. Accurate and precise structural parameters were obtained from the microwave measurements on seven isotopologues and from high-level G09 calculations.

Solving the Tautomeric Equilibrium of Purine through Analysis of the Complex Hyperfine Structure of the Four (14)N Nuclei.

The rotational spectra of two tautomers of purine have been measured by pulsed jet Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy coupled to a UV ultrafast vaporization system. The population ratio of the two main tautomers [N(7)H]/[N(9)H] is about 1/40 in the gas phase. It contrasts with the solid state where only the N(7)H species is present, or in solution where a mixture of both tautomers is observed. For both species, a full quadrupolar hyperfine analysis has been performed. This has led to the determination of the full sets of diagonal quadrupole coupling constants of the four (14)N atoms, which have provided crucial information for the unambiguous identification of both species. This work shows the great potential of microwave spectroscopy to study isolated biomolecules in the gas phase. All the work was supported by theoretical calculations.

Electric quadrupole interaction in cubic BCC α-Fe

Mössbauer transmission spectra for the 14.41-keV resonant line in 57Fe have been collected at room temperature by using 57Co(Rh) commercial source and α-Fe strain-free single crystal as an absorber. The absorber was magnetized to saturation in the absorber plane perpendicular to the γ-ray beam axis applying small external magnetic field. Spectra were collected for various orientations of the magnetizing field, the latter lying close to the [110] crystal plane. A positive electric quadrupole coupling constant was found practically independent on the field orientation. One obtains the following value Vzz = +1.61(4) × 1019 Vm−2 for the (average) principal component of the electric field gradient (EFG) tensor under assumption that the EFG tensor is axially symmetric and the principal axis is aligned with the magnetic hyperfine field acting on the 57Fe nucleus. The nuclear spectroscopic electric quadrupole moment for the first excited state of the 57Fe nucleus was adopted as +0.17 b. Similar measurement was performed at room temperature using as-rolled polycrystalline α-Fe foil of high purity in the zero external field. Corresponding value for the principal component of the EFG was found as Vzz = +1.92(4) × 1019 Vm−2. Hence, it seems that the origin of the EFG is primarily due to the local (atomic) electronic wave function distortion caused by the spin–orbit interaction between effective electronic spin S and incompletely quenched electronic angular momentum L. It seems as well that the lowest order term proportional to the product L·λ·S dominates, as no direction dependence of the EFG principal component is seen. The lowest order term is isotropic for a cubic symmetry as one has λ=λ 1 for cubic systems with the symbol 1 denoting unit operator and λ being the coupling parameter.