NMR study of deuterium molybdenum bronze

The deuterium NMR lineshape and spin—lattice relaxation time, T₁, have been measured in deuterium molybdenum bronze, D_1.6MoO₃, over the temperature range 166–400 K. The ²D quadrupole coupling constant is 21 kHz at room temperature. The temperature dependence of the ²D T₁ has been interpreted in terms of two independent motional processes for deuterium. The data suggest that one of the processes corresponds to diffusion of the ²D nuclei whereas the other may arise from a 180° flipping of the OD₂ moieties. This specific interpretation agrees with the results obtained for proton T₁ and proton lineshape data reported earlier.