RUI: Investigating the Interplay Between Electronic Environment and Molecular Association

在这项由化学系实验物理化学计划资助的项目中，阿默斯特学院的梁海伦教授和马歇尔教授以及他们的本科生将继续对脉冲射流中形成的气相范德华络合物进行光谱研究。这些实验包括研究氟和氯氟乙烯与质酸的络合，以确定电荷分布的变化对所得络合物的自由空间几何构型的影响。激光烧蚀源还将用于产生无法通过通常的氦-纳米液滴方法产生的金属原子络合物，以探索金属原子与其伙伴之间的电荷转移作用。他们还将建造一台啁啾脉冲傅里叶变换微波(CP-FTMW)光谱仪，该光谱仪可以在标准FTMW光谱仪的一小部分时间内获得完整的旋转光谱，从而提高本科生的工作效率。除了拟议的研究对分子相互作用的基本理解可能产生更广泛的科学影响外，梁教授和马歇尔教授将为他们的本科生提供一个具有挑战性的机会来进行困难的研究，他们将在全国专业会议上展示研究结果并在科学文献上发表。

In this project, funded by the Experimental Physical Chemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, Prof. Helen O. Leung and Prof. Mark D. Marshall of Amherst College and their undergraduate research students will continue spectroscopic studies of gas-phase van der Waals complexes formed in a pulsed jet. These experiments include studies of fluoro- and chlorofluoroethylenes complexed with protic acids in order to determine the effect of charge distribution changes on the free-space geometries of the resulting complexes. A laser ablation source will also be used to create complexes of metal atoms that can not be produced via the usual helium-nanodroplet method, in order to explore the role of charge transfer between the metal atom and its partner. The PIs will also construct a chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave (CP-FTMW) spectrometer that will allow complete rotational spectra to be acquired in a small fraction of the time taken by standard FTMW spectrometers, thereby increasing the productivity of the undergraduate researchers.Besides the potential broader scientific impact of the proposed research on a fundamental understanding of molecular interactions, Prof. Leung and Prof. Marshall will provide their undergraduate research students with a challenging opportunity to perform difficult research, the results of which they will present at national professional meetings and publish in the scientific literature.