Raman spectroscopic study of 2-methyl-1-propanethiol in silver sol

The surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of 2-methyl-1-propanethiol is investigated in a silver sol. As for other thiols, the molecule appears to be chemisorbed dissociatively on the silver surface by rupture of its S---H bond. At the bulk concentration sufficient for full monolayer coverage, the P_C conformer with a methyl group rans to the sulfur atom is found to be the most advantageous form on the surface. The vibrational assignments for the 2-methyl-1-propanethiol molecule are made by using the SERS data in conjunction with the previously reported normal-mode assignments for the corresponding alkyl chloride molecule, 1-chloro-2-methylpropane.