Structural studies of liquid alcohols by neutron diffraction

Neutron diffraction measurements have been made on methyl alcohol at room temperature for an incident wavelength of 0·94 Å. Cross sections have been obtained for CD₃OD, CD₃OH, and mixtures of these compounds. These data are subtracted to obtain the separated structure factors for intermolecular H₀H₀, the hydroxyl components, and the non-hydroxyl components. The Fourier transformations of the structure factors show components of both intra- and intermolecular distribution functions. Width parameters obtained from model fits are too large for thermal vibrations and are interpreted as geometrical broadening due to the stretching of bonds, variations in bond angles, and rotation of the methyl group. Differences in the real space distribution function between hydrogen and deuterium are noted.