Absorption and fluorescence of 8-azasteroids in the gas phase

Extensive studies of the spectral-luminescent characteristics of four 8-azasteroids and a model compound 2-(3,3-dimethyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-1-isoquinolidene)-5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedion in the gas phase have been made. From the analysis of the dependences of the absorption spectra on the vapor pressure (T_low) and the fluorescence spectra on T_low and the exciting radiation wavelength (_exc) a conclusion on the presence in the vapors of the investigated 8-azasteroids of three absorption and fluorescence centers (S-, M-, and L-centers) has been drawn. The absorption spectra of these centers strongly overlap. Their long-wave absorption boundaries have been determined. The dependence of the fluorescence spectra of all three centers on _exc, which is inherent in rarefied gases of individual organic molecules, is observed. The S-centers are the molecules of the initial steroids, and the M- and L-centers are the molecules of thermo- and phototransformations of the initial steroids. The model compound in the gas phase is characterized by the same dependences of the fluorescence spectra on T_low and _exc as those inherent in 8-azasteroids. Taking into account the additional data obtained as a result of investigation of the absorption and fluorescence spectra of solutions of the substances extracted from vacuum cells after the investigation of 8-azasteroids and the model compound in the gas phase, conclusions on the nature of the M- and L-centers have been drawn.__________Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 72, No. 1, pp. 48–57, January–February, 2005.