Raman study of water deposited in solid argon matrix.

New Raman data are presented concerning H2O and D2O water aggregation in argon matrix having the ratio of number of argon atoms to water molecules close to 40:1. Experiments were conducted at temperatures from 8 K to 34 K allowing observation of OH and OD stretching vibrations of water monomers, dimers, trimers and higher multimers, as well as broad bands corresponding to solid amorphous water. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed for thirteen or sometimes fourteen water molecules dispersed among 500 argon atoms. Resulting final configurations included dimers, trimers, tetramers and pentamers, all in open chain configurations which upon optimization resulted in mostly cyclic conformations. Observed OH stretching vibrations were assigned by comparing calculated normal modes in harmonic approximation at the B3LYP/aug-cc-pVDZ and PBEPBE1/aug-cc-pVDZ level of theory with our data and previously observed bands from infrared matrix isolation studies and Raman jet cooled experiments. Raman bands assigned to water multimers in argon matrix are shifted 20 to 25 cm-1 towards lower wavenumbers with respect to the positions of OH stretching vibrations of almost free water clusters.

Vibrational spectroscopic and DFT calculation studies of cobalt(II) complexes with 3-hydroxypicolinic acid.

Two cobalt(II) complexes with 3-hydroxypicolinic acid (3-hydroxypyridine-2-carboxylic acid, 3-OHpicH), trans-[Co(3-OHpic)2(py)2] (2) and cis-[Co(3-OHpic)2(4-pic)2] (3) (py=pyridine; 4-pic=4-picoline or 4-methylpyridine), previously synthesized and characterized by X-ray diffraction, are here studied by Raman and mid-infrared spectroscopy with the help from the corresponding DFT vibrational calculations using B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) computational model. Intramolecular O-H⋯O hydrogen bond appears in both complexes 2 and 3, while weak C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds assemble molecules of 2 or 3 into 3D architecture. A complete presentation of all Raman, infrared and theoretical results is given for complex 3. The measured spectra are shown, relative intensities and bandwidths are discussed and the assignment of vibrational bands is given on the basis of the DFT calculations. The calculated spectra agree very well with the presented experimental findings, thanks to the suitable grouping of modes. The same vibrational calculations also reveal insignificant influence of H→CH3 substitution for the spectroscopic characterization of the complex. A careful study of differences between calculated and observed wavenumbers suggests that modified single-factor scaling is actually better than the classic multi-factor scaling approach.

DFT study of molecular structure and vibrations of 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane.

Molecular structure and vibrational frequencies of 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS) have been investigated by density functional theory (DFT) calculations using Becke's three-parameter exchange functional combined with Lee-Young-Parr correlation functional (B3-LYP) and standard basis set 6-311++G(d,p). In order to reveal some possible conformations of GPTMS, potential energy scan has been performed in three dihedral angles SiCCC, CCCO and OCCO. The calculations predict the existence of seven different conformations. Raman and IR spectra of liquid samples were recorded and complete assignment of the observed vibrational bands of GPTMS molecule has been proposed. Temperature dependence of Raman spectra between 203K and 293K was examined and vibrational modes characteristic for different conformers were detached.

Luminescence and Raman spectra of acetylacetone at low temperatures.

Raman spectra of acetylacetone were recorded for molecules isolated in an argon matrix at 10 K and for a polycrystalline sample. In the solid sample, broad bands appear superimposed on a much weaker Raman spectrum corresponding mainly to the stable enol form. The position of these bands depends on the excitation wavelength (514.5 and 488.8 nm argon ion laser lines were used), sample temperature, and cooling history. They are attributed to transitions from an excited electronic state to various isomer states in the ground electronic state. Laser photons have energies comparable to energies of a number of excited triplet states predicted for a free acetylacetone molecule (Chen, X.-B.; Fang, W.-H.; Phillips, D. L. J. Phys. Chem. A 2006, 110, 4434). Since singlet-to-triplet photon absorption transitions are forbidden, states existing in the solid have mixed singlet/triplet character. Their decay results in population of different isomer states, which except for the lowest isomers SYN enol, TS2 enol (described in Matanovic I.; Doslic, N. J. Phys. Chem. A 2005, 109, 4185), and the keto form, which can be detected in the Raman spectra of the solid, are not vibrationally resolved. Differential scanning calorimetry detected two signals upon cooling of acetylacetone, one at 229 K and one at 217 K, while upon heating, they appear at 254 and 225 K. The phase change at higher temperature is attributed to a freezing/melting transition, while the one at lower temperature seems to correspond to freezing/melting of keto domains, as suggested by Johnson et al. (Johnson, M. R.; Jones, N. H.; Geis, A; Horsewill. A. J.; Trommsdorff, H. P. J. Chem. Phys. 2002, 116, 5694). Using matrix isolation in argon, the vibrational spectrum of acetylacetone at 10 K was recorded. Strong bands at 1602 and 1629 cm(-1) are assigned as the SYN enol bands, while a weaker underlying band at 1687 cm(-1) and a medium shoulder at 1617 cm(-1) are assigned as TS2 enol bands.

Raman study of TiO2 role in SiO2-Al2O3-MgO-TiO2-ZnO glass crystallization.

Tough glass-ceramic material of special mechanical properties with nanosize crystal phases formed by appropriately controlled crystallization was studied by Raman spectroscopy. It was obtained by TiO2 activated crystallization of Mg-aluminosilicate glass of SiO2-Al2O3-MgO-TiO2-ZnO composition. Crystallization was preceded by a change in the TiO2 structural position and state, which is manifested by a changed color of glass from yellow into blue shortly before the glass transformation (Tg) temperature. Raman spectroscopy was applied to explain the mechanism of this process and to establish the role of TiO2 in the early stage of glass crystallization that precedes a complete crystal phase formation. The starting glasses were found in almost complete disorder, since all bands were weak, broad and dominated by a Bose band at about 90 cm-1. After the sample annealing all bands turned out better resolved and the Bose band practically disappeared, both confirming the amorphous structure reorganization process. A multiplet observed in the vicinity of 150 cm-1 we assigned to the anatase and other titania structures that can be considered prime centers of crystallization. Finally, in the closest neighborhood of the Rayleigh line the low frequency mode characterizing nanoparticles was observed. According to this band theory, the mean size of initial titania crystallites is about 10nm for all samples, but the size distribution varies within factor two among them.