Noncovalent Hydrogen Isotope Effects in Paramagnetic Molecules

Zero-point energies (ZPE) of intermolecular, non-bonded vibrations and isotope effects, induced by noncovalent interactions, are computed for paramagnetic molecules. They appear to be not significant for complexation of HO₂ and oxygen with C–H bonds and results to isotope effect, which deviates from unit by 5–10%. However, ZPE and isotope effects in complexes of HO₂ and nitroxyl radicals with water are larger and reach 50–70%. The largest effect, about 12, is found for complexation of hydrogen atom with water. Complexation of nitroxyl and peroxy radicals by hydrogen bonds is accompanied by transfer of spin density of unpaired electron from radical to the ligand molecules and induces high field paramagnetic shifts of the ligand NMR lines. It evidences that the spin transfer via intermolecular bonds occurs by mechanism of spin polarization.     

Probing the paramagnetic interactions between the unpaired electronic spins of carbon atoms and the nuclear spins of hydrogen molecules with Raman spectroscopy

Carbon materials typically have a high density of unpaired electronic spins but the exact nature of the defect sites that give rise to their magnetic properties are not yet well understood. In this work, the paramagnetic interactions between the unpaired electronic spins of carbon atoms and the nuclear spins of hydrogen molecules were probed with Raman spectroscopy by monitoring the relative population of H₂ rotational states. For H₂, the symmetries of nuclear spin and rotational wave functions are correlated. Because of the weak interactions between H₂ nuclear spins, the transitions between odd and even rotational states are normally hindered. The magnetic field generated by unpaired electronic spins relaxes the selection rules and promotes transitions between H₂ rotational levels of different symmetry. This affects the rotational levels' relaxation kinetics toward equilibrium and makes H₂ molecules useful to study unpaired electrons in paramagnetic materials. It is suggested that simultaneous electron paramagnetic resonance and Raman measurements on carbon materials interacting with hydrogen molecules could result in a better understanding of the nature of paramagnetic defects in carbon materials, which could have a substantial impact on Li‐ion batteries or for understanding the graphene electronic properties. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

EPR spectroscopy of fullerene adducts

EPR spectroscopy has been used to identify and characterize the paramagnetic adducts of small free radicals with C₆₀ through measurements of the hyperfine interactions of protons and¹³C nuclei. The initially formed mono-radical adducts (RC₆₀) have unpaired spin density localized near the point of attachment of the radical. Generally, they are in thermal equilibrium with their diamagnetic dimer, and have a surprisingly large barrier to internal rotation about the new bond. The tri- and penta-radical adducts have electronic structures similar to those of allyl and cyclopentadienyl radicals, respectively.NRCC No. 35262     

Antiferromagnetic Ordering of Magnetic Clusters Units in Nb6F15

We have studied the magnetic cluster compound Nb₆F₁₅ which has an odd number of 15 valence electrons per (Nb₆F₁₂)³⁺ cluster core, as a function of temperature using nuclear magnetic resonance, magnetic susceptibility, electron magnetic resonance and neutron powder diffraction. Nuclear magnetic resonance of the ¹⁹F nuclei shows two lines corresponding to the apical F^a?a nucleus, and to the inner Fⁱ nuclei. The temperature dependence of the signal from the Fⁱ nuclei reveals an antiferromagnetic ordering at T < 5 K, with a hyperfine field of ~2 mT. Magnetic susceptibility exhibits a Curie–Weiss behavior with T _N ~5 K, and μ _eff ~1.57 μ_B close to the expected theoretical value for one unpaired electron (1.73 μ_B). Electron magnetic resonance linewidth shows a transition at 5 K. Upon cooling from 10 to 1.4 K, the neutron diffraction shows a decrease in the intensity of the low-angle diffuse scattering below Q ~0.27 Å^?1. This decrease is consistent with emergence of magnetic order of large magnetic objects (clusters). This study shows that Nb₆F₁₅ is paramagnetic at RT and undergoes a transition to antiferromagnetic order at 5 K. This unique antiferromagnetic ordering results from the interaction between magnetic spins delocalized over each entire (Nb₆F ₁₂ ⁱ )³⁺ cluster core, rather than the common magnetic ordering.     

Self-Aggregation and Orientation of the Ion Channel-Forming Zervamicin IIA in the Membranes of ePC Vesicles Studied by cw EPR and ESEEM Spectroscopy

The ion channel-forming peptide antibiotic zervamicin A was studied in egg phosphocholin lipid membranes of large multilamellar vesicles (LMV) at 77 K. Continuous wave electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) methods combined with site-specific electron spin labeling were used to study the aggregation and immersion depth of two analog molecules, i.e., each monolabeled either at the N- or C-terminal end of the helical molecule. Analysis of the shape of the EPR spectra indicates that zervamicin molecules form aggregates in which the dipolar interaction between the spin labels at the N-terminus is substantially larger than that between the labels at the C-terminus. The ESEEM method was used to study the interaction between the nitroxide radical spin labels of the zervamicin molecules and deuterium nuclei in LMV, which were prepared using a D₂O buffer. It is established that the largest amplitude of deuterium modulation of the unpaired electron is observed for zervamicin molecules labeled at the N-terminus. Based on the analysis of the Fourier parameters of the deuterium modulated spectrum, a model of the immersion depth of the terminal ends of the zervamicin molecule in a lipid bilayer is formulated. All of the spin labels at the N-terminus are grouped at the lipid–water interface, whereas 60% of labels at the C-terminus are located at the lipid–water interface and 40% are more deeply inserted into the lipid bilayer.     

EPR and NMR characterization of theS=9 excited state and spin density distribution in the single-molecule magnet Fe8Br8: Implications to theS=10 model and magnetization tunneling pathways

High-sensitivity, variable-frequency, high-field electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements are reported for theS=10 single-molecule magnet Fe₈Br₈. We find that theS=10 state is nested with its first excited state, withS=9, located at only 24±2 K above. Also reported are some preliminary⁸¹Br NMR measurements of the unpaired electron spin density on the Br^? sites. The results provide new insight and benchmarks for improved electronic and magnetic structural calculations and macroscopic tunneling pathways of this class of single-molecule magnets.     

The electron spin resonance spectrum of a γ-irradiated single crystal of glycine

It is shown that γ rays act on glycine to give the free radical NH₃ ⁺-?H-CO₂ ^? which remains trapped in the solid. Electron spin resonance spectra from an irradiated single glycine crystal show marked anisotropy and it is deduced that the radicals are precisely oriented in the crystal lattice. The symmetry shown by the spectra is consistent with that of the crystal lattice. Despite overlapping of lines, the spectra due to the NH₃ ⁺-?H-CO₂ ^? radical have been interpreted in terms of electronnucleus coupling tensors for the N, the H_(C) and the three H_(N) nuclei, the latter being equivalent by virtue of a rotation or tunnelling of the -NH₃ ⁺ grouping. A qualitative interpretation of these tensors in terms of the electronic structure of the radical is given. This is consistent with the negative spin density on the H_(C) atoms and a positive spin density on the H_(N) atoms, as predicted by theoretical treatments. The radicals appear to be oriented in the lattice in approximately the same way as their parent molecules.     

Semiempirical molecular orbital calculations of anisotropic 1H, 13C and 19F hyperfine coupling constants in hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon radicals

The anisotropic hyperfine coupling constants (AHCC) from the electron spin resonance (E.S.R.) spectra of a variety of atoms in organic radicals have been calculated by means of semiempirical molecular orbital wavefunctions in the INDO approximation. Hyperfine tensors involving ¹H, ¹³C and ¹⁹F nuclei are obtained for the ?H, ?H₃, CH₃?H₂, (CH₃)₃? hydrocarbon radicals, malonic acid radical, ?H₂F, ?F₂H, ?F₃ and CF₃?H₂ radicals. The calculated values are compared with available experimental, non-empirical and semiempirical values for these radicals. All integrals of the operator entering the electronic contributions have been evaluated over Slater type orbitals. The introduction of deorthogonalized wavefunctions gives generally better calculated results. In particular, the tensor components of the ¹⁹F AHCC are in good agreement with the experimental results without the necessity of readjusting the effective nuclear charges.     

Double electron-electron resonance in electron spin echo: Conformations of spin-labeled poly-4-vinilpyridine in glassy solutions

Double electron-electron resonance in electron spin echo has been used to study the glassy solutions of poly-4-vinylpyridine doped by nitroxyl radicals frozen in liquid nitrogen. The phase relaxation of spin labels due to spin-spin interaction of unpaired electrons has been studied. The intramolecular and intermolecular contributions of the dipole-dipole interaction of spin labels into relaxation process have been separated. It has been established that both the intramolecular and intermolecular spin-spin interaction of spin labels lead to the dependence of echo signal on timeT of the exp (?aT ^q ) type. It is shown that for the intramolecular interaction the experimentalq value is 0.3, for the intermolecular one it is 2. The assumption has been made of the linear structure of polymeric molecules due to the presence of a sufficiently high density of an electric charge on polymeric molecules.     

Free radicals in pyrimidines: E.S.R. of a γ-irradiated single crystal of 5-nitrouracil

Free radicals are observed in γ-irradiated single crystals of 5-nitrouracil with the unpaired electron showing hyperfine interaction with one nitrogen atom. The principal values of hyperfine coupling are A_x = 22·5 g, A_y = 25·2 g, and A_z = 40·0 g, and the principal values of the spectroscopic splitting factor are g_u = 2·0117, g_v = 2·0064 and g_w = 2·0027. The relationship of the directions of the corresponding principal axes to the molecular orientations show that the unpaired electron must be located in an sp ² orbital on either N₍₁₎ or N₍₅₎. Considerations of the mechanism of radical formation and comparison to radiation damage in other molecules make the N₍₁₎ location seem more probable. The π interaction of the nitro group on C₍₅₎ evidently prevents the formulation of free radicals with the unpaired electron on C₍₅₎. That carbon atom is the most common location of unpaired electron density in other pyrimidine free radicals.     

Self-Trapped Excitons in Ionic-Covalent Silver Halide Crystals and Nanostructures: High-Frequency EPR, ESE, ENDOR and ODMR Studies

Silver halides have unique features in solid state physics because their properties are considered to be of borderline nature between ionic and covalent bonding. In AgCl, the self-trapped hole (STH) is centered and partly trapped in the cationic sublattice, forming an Ag²⁺ ion inside of a (AgCl₆)^4? complex as a result of the Jahn–Teller distortion. The STH in AgCl can capture an electron from the conduction band forming the self-trapped exciton (STE). Recent results of a study of STE by means of high-frequency electron paramagnetic resonance, electron spin echo, electron–nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) and optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) are reviewed. The properties of the STE in AgCl crystals, such as exchange coupling, the ordering of the triplet and singlet sublevels, the dynamical properties of the singlet and triplet states, and the hyperfine interaction with the Ag and Cl (Br) nuclei are discussed. Direct information about the spatial distribution of the wave function of STE unpaired electrons was obtained by ENDOR. From a comparison with the results of an ENDOR study of the shallow electron center and STH, it is concluded that the electron is mainly contained in a hydrogen-like 1s orbital with a Bohr radius of 15.1 ± 0.6 Å, but near its center the electron density reflects the charge distribution of the hole. The hole of the STE is virtually identical to an isolated STH center. For AgCl nanocrystals embedded into the KCl crystalline matrix, the anisotropy of the g-factor of STE and STH was found to be substantially reduced compared with that of bulk AgCl crystals, which can be explained by a considerable suppression of the Jahn–Teller effect in nanoparticles. A study of ODMR in AgBr nanocrystals in KBr revealed spatial confinement effects and allowed estimating the nanocrystal size from the shape of the ODMR spectra.     

<Superscript>27</Superscript>Al NMR Study of the Structure and Dynamics of Natrolite

The temperature dependences of nuclear magnetic resonance and magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of ²⁷Al nuclei in natrolite (Na₂Al₂Si₃O₁₀· 2H₂O) have been studied. The influence of water molecules and sodium ions mobility on the shape of the ²⁷Al NMR spectrum and framework dynamics have been discussed The temperature dependences of the spin–lattice relaxation times T₁ of ²⁷Al nuclei in natrolite have also been studied. It has been shown that the spin–lattice relaxation of the ²⁷Al is governed by the electric quadrupole interaction with the crystal electric field gradients modulated by translational motion of H₂O molecules in the natrolite pores. The dipolar interactions with paramagnetic impurities become significant as a relaxation mechanism of the ²⁷Al nuclei only at low temperatures (<270 K).     

Gd3+ electron spin resonance spectroscopy on LaO1 ? x F x FeAs superconductors

We report an electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy study on polycrystalline samples of the LaO_{1 ? x} F _x FeAs (x = 0 and 0.1) compound with small levels of Gd doping (2% and 5%). The Gd ESR signal is found to be sensitive to the magnetic phase transition from the paramagnetic to the spin density wave (SDW) state occurring in the parent LaO_{1 ? x} F _x FeAs compounds at T _SDW ?? 130 K. Interestingly, the analysis of the low-temperature ESR spectra of the c-axis oriented Gd_{1 ? y} La _y OFeAs samples gives evidence for the magnetically nonequivalent Gd sites and also for sites having a different local charge environment. The analysis of the temperature dependence of the ESR linewidths gives evidence for a coupling of the localized 4f electrons of Gd to the conduction electrons in the FeAs layers. The ESR data reveal that the fluorine substitution, which provides electron doping, suppresses the SDW order and enhances the density of states in the electronic bands stemming from the xz and yz orbital states of Fe to which the 4f electrons are most strongly coupled.     

Electron spin resonance in X-irradiated single crystal of strontium tartrate tetrahydrate

The electron spin resonance spectra of an irradiated single crystal of strontium tartrate tetrahydrate (SrC₄H₄O₆·4H₂O) grown from silica gel have been investigated. Two species of free radical were observed at room and liquid nitrogen temperatures. The free radicals were found to be the result of the splitting of a C-H bond of the tartrate ions contained in the unit cell. The unpaired electron of each radical specie interacts with two nonequivalent protons giving rise to hyperfine splittings of relatively small magnitude. The g factors of the radicals were found to be almost isotropic and have similar values and it was very difficult to determine the ESR parameters from experimental patterns directly. A least-squares method, proposed earlier, was used to analyze the observed experimental patterns at various orientations.The existence of two nonequivalent radicals is believed to be the result of the nonplanarity of the two halves of the tartrate ions. The H nuclei giving rise to the hyperfine splittings are the protons of the hydroxyl groups attached directly to the unsaturated carbon atoms and those attached directly to the other asymmetric carbon atoms (β protons). The principal elements of the hyperfine splittings for the observed radicals were: Radical I: ?9.02, ? 2.84, ?0.47 and ?1.66, ?1.54, ?0.89. Radical II: ?10.16, ?7.83, ? 1.51 and 0.00, ?1.58, ?1.06. The radicals were found to be very stable, the ESR patterns being undiminished for more than six months after the irradiation.     

Jahn-teller chromium ions in CdF<Subscript>2</Subscript> and CaF<Subscript>2</Subscript> crystals: An EPR spectroscopic study in the frequency range 9.3–300 GHz

The bivalent chromium impurity centers in CdF₂ and CaF₂ crystals are investigated using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) in the frequency range 9.3–300 GHz. It is found that Cr²⁺ ions in the lattices of these crystals occupy cation positions and form [CrF₄F₄]^6? clusters whose magnetic properties at low temperatures are characterized by orthorhombic symmetry. The parameters of the electron Zeeman and ligand interactions of the Cr²⁺ ion with four fluorine ions in the nearest environment are determined. The initial splittings in the system of spin energy levels of the cluster are measured.     

NMR study of spin dynamics in disordered Heisenberg paramagnets

The spin dynamics in the disordered paramagnets KMg_1?xMn_xF₃ and Zn_1?xMn_xF₂ were investigated using the F¹⁹ NMR. Linewidths and relaxation rates of those distinct classes of F¹⁹ nuclei that have different numbers of nearest neighbor magnetic ions were obtained as a function of concentration x. The particular importance of the isolated magnetic ion to the low frequency spectral density was established.     

Electronic structure and spatial distribution of the spin density of shallow nitrogen donors in the SiC lattice

The discovery of unique magnetooptical properties of paramagnetic centers in silicon carbide, which make it possible to control spins of small arrays of centers of atomic sizes to single centers at room temperatures, using the techniques of optical detection of the magnetic resonance, posed a number of problems, among which one of the main ones is the creation of conditions under which spin relaxation effects are minimized. As studies of properties of spin nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond showed, the main contribution to spin relaxation is made by the interaction with nitrogen donors, being a major impurity in diamond. A similar problem exists for silicon carbide, since nitrogen donors are also basic background impurities. The objective of this work is to study the spatial distribution of the spin density of nitrogen donors in two basic silicon carbide polytypes, i.e., 4H-SiC and 6H-SiC, to use this information for minimizing the interaction of nitrogen donors with paramagnetic centers in silicon carbide. The results of the study are analyzed by magnetic resonance methods; the spin density distribution on the nearest coordination spheres of nitrogen donors occupying carbon sites in silicon carbide is determined. It is concluded that paramagnetic centers in the 4H-SiC polytype, including silicon vacancies, can be more stable to the interactions with unpaired donor electrons, since electrons are not localized on the coordination sphere closest to the paramagnetic center in this case.     

Direct observation of superexchange in a disordered molecular solid

A novel observation of magnetic superexchange interactions in a disordered molecular solid is reported. Coordinated electrical conductivity and electron spin resonance measurements are made on controlled, variable concentrations of the molecule trip-p-tolylamine and its paramagnetic radical cation, molecularly dispersed in a polymer matrix. For a given concentration of spins in the concentration range 10¹⁹cm^-3 <N_s <5× 10²⁰ cm^-3, pronounced exchange narrowing is discovered as the density of neutral molecules is systematically increased. The temperature dependences of the ESR linewidth and the conductivity eliminate motional narrowing due to diffusive hopping of spins as the mechanism, since in these systems the paramagnetic ions are also the source of mobile charge.     

13C Hyperfine interactions in CD3C60 and the distribution of unpaired spin on the C60 cage

¹³C hyperfine interactions obtained for CD₃C₆₀ are compared with previous data for MuC₆₀ and used to map the unpaired spin distribution on the C₆₀ surface of these radicals with the help of semi-empirical and density functional calculations. It is concluded that the unpaired spin is predominantly located on seven atoms near the point of attachment of the substituent.     

Dynamic nuclear polarisation via the integrated solid effect II: experiments on naphthalene-h8 doped with pentacene-d14

In dynamic nuclear polarisation (DNP), also called hyperpolarisation, a small amount of unpaired electron spins is added to the sample containing the nuclear spins, and the polarisation of these unpaired electron spins is transferred to the nuclear spins by means of a microwave field. Traditional DNP polarises the electron spin of stable paramagnetic centres by cooling down to low temperature and applying a strong magnetic field. Then weak continuous wave microwave fields are used to induce the polarisation transfer. Complicated cryogenic equipment and strong magnets can be avoided using short-lived photo-excited triplet states that are strongly aligned in the optical excitation process. However, a much faster transfer of the electron spin polarisation is needed and pulsed DNP methods like nuclear orientation via electron spin locking (NOVEL) and the integrated solid effect (ISE) are used.

To describe the polarisation transfer with the strong microwave fields in NOVEL and ISE, the usual perturbation methods cannot be used anymore. In the previous paper, we presented a theoretical approach to calculate the polarisation transfer in ISE. In the present paper, the theory is applied to the system naphthalene-h₈ doped with pentacene-d₁₄ yielding the photo-excited triplet states and compared with experimental results.