MRI: Acquisition of Laser Light Scattering Instrumentation

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This award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program will enable the Chemistry Department at Willamette University to acquire laser light scattering instrumentation. With these new capabilities, the PI will investigate the nature of intermolecular interactions in binary liquid mixtures by analyzing both Rayleigh and Raman scattering intensities as a function of composition and temperature. In addition, in collaboration with Dr. Jeffrey Willemsen, he will study the antispermatogenic nature of gossypol derivatives. Student researchers at this undergraduate institution will also participate in these projects. Liquid solutions and the solvation process are vital to both the scientific community and the chemical industry, but the liquid phase is a challenge to understand and model. The close proximity of molecules in a liquid makes the influence of the intermolecular potential impossible to ignore, and the lack of long range order in a liquid further complicates matters. Fortunately, motion and dynamics in a solution may be studied by directing a laser onto the liquid sample and measuring the intensity and frequency of the scattered light. Static and dynamic light scattering techniques represent an indispensable tool for the in-situ characterization of complex liquid systems.