Laser Probes of the Spectroscopy and Dynamics of Flexible Biomolecules and Complexes

实验物理化学计划支持Timothy S。普渡大学的Zwier和他的学生在他们的研究的单一构象光谱和构象动力学的小生物分子，肽模拟物，和其他小，灵活的分子和复合物冷却在超声膨胀。 这些分子具有显着的构象复杂性，弥合了适用于气相光谱和大生物分子的系统之间的差距。 实验利用直接红外吸收或间接受激发射泵浦（SEP），以促进选定的构象或异构体到更高的能量状态。 然后将这些物质重新冷却，以获得明确识别和表征所需的清晰光谱。该研究将SEP群体转移技术扩展到中红外，从而可以研究更广泛的灵活系统。 这项工作对蛋白质折叠问题产生了更广泛的影响，并可能提供有关激光控制分子形状的信息，可能应用于使用光在单个分子中存储信息。普渡大学的研究生和本科生，以及来自主要本科院校的教师和学生，都参与了这项研究。

The Experimental Physical Chemistry program supports Timothy S. Zwier of Purdue University and his students in their studies of the single-conformation spectroscopy and conformational dynamics of small biomolecules, peptide mimics, and other small, flexible molecules and complexes cooled in supersonic expansions. These molecules have significant conformational complexity, bridging the gap between systems amenable to gas phase spectroscopy and large biomolecules. The experiments exploit direct infrared absorption or indirect stimulated emission pumping (SEP) to promote selected conformers or isomers to higher energy states. These species then are re-cooled to achieve the sharp spectra necessary for their unambiguous identification and characterization. The research expands the SEP-population transfer techniques into the mid-infrared, allowing the study of a wider range of flexible systems. This work is having a broader impact on problems of protein folding and may provide information about the laser control of molecular shape, with possible applications for using light to store information in single molecules. Graduate and undergraduate students at Purdue University, as well as faculty and students from primarily undergraduate institutions, are participating in the research.