Mechanisms of photoexcitation and photoionization in small water clusters

The S₀ → S₁ excitation leads to strong polarization and formation of [(H₂O)₂]⁺˙ from which both photoexcited and photoionized products are generated.

Microhydration of a benzoic acid molecule and its dissociation

C₆H₅COOH requires at least eight H₂O molecules for its dissociation. A linear correlation is observed between pK_a and n_H2O; an unknown pK_a can thus be predicted.

Dynamics of structural diffusion in phosphoric acid hydrogen-bond clusters

For protonated H₃PO₄ clusters, the Eigen–Zundel–Eigen mechanism is enhanced by fluctuations in the H-bond chain length and local-dielectric environment, and can proceed without the reorientation of H₃PO₄ molecules as in the case of neat liquid H₃PO₄.

DFT Study of Hydrogen-Bonding Interaction, Solvation Effect, and Electric-Field Effect on Raman Spectra of Hydrated Proton

Strong hydrogen-bonding interaction and Raman spectra of hydrated proton have been investigated using hybrid density functional theory method B3LYP. The solvation model of density (SMD) approach is employed in the present calculation to simulate hydrated protons in aqueous solution. Focusing on the different hydrogen-bonded Eigen-water and Zundel-water interactions, we present a better assignment of Raman signals of hydrated proton on the basis of vibrational analysis in different environments. Our results showed that B3LYP calculations could give a good prediction for characteristic vibrational frequencies of Eigen and Zundel isomers in liquid phase. The O-H stretching vibrational frequencies from Eigen and Zundel units are very sensitive to hydrogen-bonding interaction with solvent water molecules. Moreover, the solvation effect and the external electric-field effect lead to the proton deviating from the central position of Zundel structure and finally resulting in a transition to Eigen one in aqueous solution. Furthermore, by combining theoretical prediction and Raman scattering theory, we calculate absolute Raman intensities of characteristic signals based on the polarizability tensor derivatives of hydrated proton clusters. This is very helpful to infer the microstructure of hydrated protons in aqueous solution by using Raman measurements.

Competitive excited-state single or double proton transfer mechanisms for bis-2,5-(2-benzoxazolyl)-hydroquinone and its derivatives

The excited state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) mechanisms of 2-(2-hydroxyphenyl)benzoxazole (HBO), bis-2,5-(2-benzoxazolyl)-hydroquinone (BBHQ) and 2,5-bis(5'-tert-butyl-benzoxazol-2'-yl)hydroquinone (DHBO) have been investigated using time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). The calculated vertical excitation energies based on the TDDFT method reproduced the experimental absorption and emission spectra well. Three kinds of stable structures were found on the S1 state potential energy surface (PES). A new ESIPT mechanism that differs from the one proposed previously (Mordzinski et al., Chem. Phys. Lett., 1983, 101, 291. and Lim et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2006, 128, 14542.) is proposed. The new mechanism includes the possibility of simultaneous double proton transfer, or successive single transfers, in addition to the accepted single proton transfer mechanism. Hydrogen bond strengthening in the excited state was based on primary bond lengths, angles, IR vibrational spectra and hydrogen bond energy. Intramolecular charge transfer based on the frontier molecular orbitals (MOs) also supports the proposed mechanism of the ESIPT reaction. To further elucidate the proposed mechanism, reduced dimensionality PESs of the S0 and S1 states were constructed by keeping the O-H distance fixed at a series of values. The potential barrier heights among the local minima on the S1 surface imply competitive single and double proton transfer branches in the mechanism. Based on the new ESIPT mechanism, the observed fluorescence quenching can be satisfactorily explained.

The mechanism of excited state proton dissociation in microhydrated hydroxylamine clusters

The dynamics and mechanism of excited-state proton dissociation and transfer in microhydrated hydroxylamine clusters are studied using NH2OH(H2O)n (n = 1-4) as model systems and the DFT/B3LYP/aug-cc-pVDZ and TD-DFT/B3LYP/aug-cc-pVDZ methods as model calculations. This investigation is based on the Förster acidity scheme and emphasizes the photoacid dissociation in the ground (S0) and lowest singlet-excited states (S1) and the interplay between the photo and thermal excitations. The quantum chemical results suggest that the intermediate complexes are formed only in the S1 state in a low local-dielectric environment (e.g., ε = 1) and that upon the S0→ S1 transition, the photon energy excites mostly NH2OH, which leads to a homolytic cleavage of the O-H bond and to dynamically stable charge-separated Rydberg-like H-bond complexes (e.g., NH2O˙-H3O(+)˙). The potential energy surfaces for proton displacement in the smallest Rydberg-like H-bond complex support the intersection of the S0 and S1 states in low local-dielectric environments, whereas in a high local-dielectric environment (e.g., ε = 78), these two states are completely separated. Based on the static results, a photoacid-dissociation mechanism that involves Rydberg-like H-bond complex formation, an H-bond chain extension and fluctuations in the local-dielectric environment is proposed. NVT-BOMD simulations confirm the static results and show that the dynamic behavior of the dissociating proton in the S1 state is not different from that of the protonated H-bond systems in the ground state, which consists of the oscillatory shuttling and structural diffusion motions. These findings allow our theoretical methods, which have been used successfully in protonated H-bond systems in the ground state, to be applied in the study of the photoacid-dissociation processes. The current theoretical study suggests effective steps as well as guidelines for the investigation of the dynamics of the photoacid-dissociation and transfer processes in the Förster acidity scheme, provided that the exciting photon does not lead to a significant change in the structure of the intermediate complex in the excited state.

Dynamics of proton transfer in imidazole hydrogen-bond chains

Potential energy curve of H-bond (2) in G4-[1]^(ω1=−92) is nearly identical to H-bond (1) in G2-[1]^(ω1=−94), the protonated H-bond (2) becomes a new precursor for the next transfer and confirms the Eigen–Zundel–Eigen mechanism.

Proton transfer in a short hydrogen bond caused by solvation shell fluctuations: an ab initio MD and NMR/UV study of an (OHO)(-) bonded system

We present a joint experimental and quantum chemical study on the influence of solvent dynamics on the protonation equilibrium in a strongly hydrogen bonded phenol-acetate complex in CD2Cl2. Particular attention is given to the correlation of the proton position distribution with the internal conformation of the complex itself and with fluctuations of the aprotic solvent. Specifically, we have focused on a complex formed by 4-nitrophenol and tetraalkylammonium-acetate in CD2Cl2. Experimentally we have used combined low-temperature (1)H and (13)C NMR and UV-vis spectroscopy and showed that a very strong OHO hydrogen bond is formed with proton tautomerism (PhOH···(-)OAc and PhO(-)···HOAc forms, both strongly hydrogen bonded). Computationally, we have employed ab initio molecular dynamics (70 and 71 solvent molecules, with and without the presence of a counter-cation, respectively). We demonstrate that the relative motion of the counter-cation and the "free" carbonyl group of the acid plays the major role in the OHO bond geometry and causes proton "jumps", i.e. interconversion of PhOH···(-)OAc and PhO(-)···HOAc tautomers. Weak H-bonds between CH(CD) groups of the solvent and the oxygen atom of carbonyl stabilize the PhOH···(-)OAc type of structures. Breaking of CH···O bonds shifts the equilibrium towards PhO(-)···HOAc form.

Representing the potential-energy surface of protonated water clusters by high-dimensional neural network potentials

We report a reactive neural network potential for protonated water clusters that accurately represents the density-functional theory potential-energy surface.

Competition between excited state proton and OH− transport via a short water wire: solvent effects open the gate

We investigate the acid–base proton exchange reaction in a microsolvated bifunctional chromophore by means of quantum chemical calculations.

Proton dissociation and transfer in a phosphoric acid doped imidazole system

Fluctuations of local-dielectric environment and H-bond chain lengths lead to intermediate complexes and proton transfer along the Im H-bond chains.

Computational study of the one- and two-dimensional infrared spectra of a proton-transfer mode in a hydrogen-bonded complex dissolved in a polar nanocluster

The signatures of nanosolvation on the one- and two-dimensional (1D and 2D) IR spectra of a proton-transfer mode in a hydrogen-bonded complex dissolved in polar solvent molecule nanoclusters of varying size are elucidated by using mixed quantum-classical molecular dynamics simulations. For this particular system, increasing the number of solvent molecules successively from N=7 to N=9 initiates the transition of the system from a cluster state to a bulk-like state. Both the 1D and 2D IR spectra reflect this transition through pronounced changes in their peak intensities and numbers, but the time-resolved 2D IR spectra also manifest spectral features that uniquely identify the onset of the cluster-to-bulk transition. In particular, it is observed that in the 1D IR spectra, the relative intensities of the peaks change such that the number of peaks decreases from three to two as the size of the cluster increases from N=7 to N=9. In the 2D IR spectra, off-diagonal peaks are observed in the N=7 and N=8 cases at zero waiting time, but not in the N=9 case. It is known that there are no off-diagonal peaks in the 2D IR spectrum of the bulk version of this system at zero waiting time, so the disappearance of these peaks is a unique signature of the onset of bulk-like behavior. Through an examination of the trajectories of various properties of the complex and solvent, it is possible to relate the emergence of these off-diagonal peaks to an interplay between the vibrations of the complex and the solvent polarization dynamics.

Anharmonic Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus (RRKM) and product branching ratio calculations for the partially deuterated protonated water dimers: dissociation and isomerization

Partially deuterated protonated water dimers, H2O·H(+)·D2O, H2O·D(+)·HDO, and HDO·H(+)·HDO, as important intermediates of isotopic labeled reaction of H3O(+) + D2O, undergo direct dissociation and indirect dissociation, i.e., isomerization before the dissociation. With Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus theory and ab initio calculations, we have computed their dissociation and isomerization rate constants separately under the harmonic and anharmonic oscillator models. On the basis of the dissociation and isomerization rate constants, branching ratios of two primary products, [HD2O(+)]∕[H2DO(+)], are predicted under various kinetics models with the harmonic or anharmonic approximation included. The feasible kinetics model accounting for experimental results is shown to include anharmonic effect in describing dissociation, while adopting harmonic approximation for isomerization. Thus, the anharmonic effect is found to play important roles affecting the dissociation reaction, while isomerization rates are shown to be insensitive to whether the anharmonic or harmonic oscillator model is being applied.

Dynamics and mechanism of structural diffusion in linear hydrogen bond

Dynamics and mechanism of proton transfer in a protonated hydrogen bond (H-bond) chain were studied, using the CH(3)OH(2)(+)(CH(3)OH)(n) complexes, n = 1-4, as model systems. The present investigations used B3LYP/TZVP calculations and Born-Oppenheimer MD (BOMD) simulations at 350 K to obtain characteristic H-bond structures, energetic and IR spectra of the transferring protons in the gas phase and continuum liquid. The static and dynamic results were compared with the H(3)O(+)(H(2)O)(n) and CH(3)OH(2)(+)(H(2)O)(n) complexes, n = 1-4. It was found that the H-bond chains with n = 1 and 3 represent the most active intermediate states and the CH(3)OH(2)(+)(CH(3)OH)(n) complexes possess the lowest threshold frequency of proton transfer. The IR spectra obtained from BOMD simulations revealed that the thermal energy fluctuation and dynamics help promote proton transfer in the shared-proton structure with n = 3 by lowering the vibrational energy for the interconversion between the oscillatory shuttling and structural diffusion motions, leading to a higher population of the structural diffusion motion than in the shared-proton structure with n = 1. Additional explanation on the previously proposed mechanisms was introduced, with the emphases on the energetic of the transferring proton, the fluctuation of the number of the CH(3)OH molecules in the H-bond chain, and the quasi-dynamic equilibriums between the shared-proton structure (n = 3) and the close-contact structures (n ≥ 4). The latter prohibits proton transfer reaction in the H-bond chain from being concerted, since the rate of the structural diffusion depends upon the lifetime of the shared-proton intermediate state.

Structure, stability and spectral signatures of monoprotic carborane acid-water clusters (CBW(n), where n = 1-6)

The gas phase structure, stability, spectra, and proton transfer properties of monoprotic carborane acid-water clusters [CB(11)F(m)H(11-m)(OH(2))(1)]-(H(2)O)(n) (where m = 0, 5, and 10; n = 1-6) have been calculated using density functional theory (DFT) with the Becke's three-parameter hybrid exchange functional and Lee-Yang-Parr correlation functional (B3LYP) using 6-31+G* basis set. Results reveal that Eigen cation defects are found in CBW(n) (where n = 2-6) clusters and these clusters are significantly more stable than the non-Eigen geometry. In addition to the conventional hydrogen bond (H-bond) the role of dihydrogen bond (DHB) and halogen bond (XB) in the stabilization of these clusters can be observed from the molecular graphs derived from the atoms in molecules (AIM) analysis. Spectral information shows the features of Eigen cation and proton oscillation involved in the proton transfer process. The dissociation of proton from the perfluoro derivatives with two water molecules is more favorable when compared to the other derivatives.