Structural features of monohydrated 2-(4-fluorophenyl)ethylamine: a combined spectroscopic and computational study

Conformational Mapping, Interactions, and Fluorine Impact by Combined Spectroscopic Approaches and Quantum Chemical Calculations

Noncovalent interactions and their careful variation can be crucial in understanding molecular structures, conformational topographies, and properties. Here, we examine the fluorination impact on the structure and conformational behavior of 2-(2-fluorophenyl)ethyl alcohol (2-FPEAL) by monitoring the first individual ionization-loss-stimulated Raman spectra of the jet-cooled molecule. The comparison of two different broad-range spectra and predicted equivalents discloses two distinct structures. One possesses a folded side chain (gauche) and the other an extended chain (anti) with the terminal hydrogen atom pointing opposite or toward the fluorine side, indicating the improper previous tentative assignment of the latter. These conformers resemble and differ from the nonfluorinated analogue structures. Theoretical analyses reveal interconversion pathways of 2-FPEAL conformers during expansion and the delicate balance between attractive (C-H···F and O-H···π) and repulsive interactions. These findings show the achievements of our integrated approach, suggesting its potential for overcoming future structural challenges.

Synergistic Spectroscopic and Computational Characterization Evidencing the Preservation or Flipping of the Hydroxyl Group of 2-Phenylethyl Alcohol upon Single and Double Hydration

Even apparently simple, obtaining and analyzing observations on molecules and clusters and unambiguously assigning their structures is challenging. We report here the first ionization-loss Raman spectra compared to quantum chemical predictions for establishing the structural preferences of hydrates of the neurotransmitters hydroxy analogue, 2-phenylethyl alcohol (PEAL). The spectra encode two monohydrates and two previously unnoticed dihydrates, consequences of water insertion and sidewise attachment to the O-H group of gauche PEALs, in PEAL-H2O and PEAL-(H2O)2, or the higher-energy gauche-trans PEAL in the latter. The electronic structures retain the stable PEAL or flip its O-H to convert the gauche-trans PEAL conformer to the global minimum-energy dihydrate. We disclose conventional and bifurcated hydrogen bonds and electron steric repulsions by noncovalent interaction analysis and correlations between the experimental O-H stretching vibrational frequencies and the O-H and H···X bond lengths and electron densities, pointing to implications on hydrate forms and our approach virtue.

Experimental/Computational Study on the Impact of Fluorine on the Structure and Noncovalent Interactions in the Monohydrated Cluster of ortho-Fluorinated 2-Phenylethylamine

Fluorine-containing medicinal compounds frequently allow modulation of physical-chemical properties. Here, we address the effect of fluorine, near the ethylamino side chain, on conformational flexibility and noncovalent interactions (NCIs) of the selected jet-cooled monohydrated cluster of 2-(2-fluoro-phenyl)-ethylamine (2-FPEA) by mass-selected resonance-enhanced two-photon ionization and ionization-loss stimulated Raman spectroscopies. Our results show that Raman spectral signatures of the 2-FPEA-H₂O cluster match the scaled harmonic vibrational Raman frequencies, resulting from density functional theory calculations of the most stable 2-FPEA gauche conformer hydrogen-bonded (HB) to water, confirming the three-dimensional cluster structure. This predicted electronic structure, together with NCI analysis, allows visualization and assessment of the attractive and repulsive interactions. The comparison of the NCIs and revealed red (O-H and N-H stretches) and blue shifts (C-H stretches and CH₂ out-of-plane bends) of the cluster to other class members confirm O-H···N, N-H···π, C-H···O, and C-H···F HB formation and their contribution to structure stabilization, uncovering the potential of the approach.

Revealing the Structure and Noncovalent Interactions of Isolated Molecules by Laser-Desorption/Ionization-Loss Stimulated Raman Spectroscopy and Quantum Calculations

The structural and dynamical characteristics of isolated molecules are essential, yet obtaining this information is difficult. We demonstrate laser-desorption jet-cooling/ionization-loss stimulated Raman spectroscopy to obtain Raman spectral signatures of nonvolatile molecules in the gas phase. The vibrational features of a test substance, the most abundant conformer of tryptamine, are compared and found to match those resulting from the scaled harmonic Raman spectrum obtained by density functional theory calculations. The vibrational signatures serve to identify the most prominent gauche conformer and evaluate its predicted electronic structure. These findings, together with noncovalent interaction (NCI) analysis, provide new insights into electron densities and reduced density gradients, assessing the hydrogen bonds (N-H···π and C-H···H-C) and interplay between attractive and repulsive NCIs affecting the structure. This approach accesses vibrational signatures of isolated nonvolatile molecules by tabletop lasers at uniform resolution and in a broad frequency range, promising great benefit to future studies.

A new imaging-based method for alignment of multiple laser beams

A new method for multiple laser beams alignment, useful in a wide range of spectroscopies, is proposed and demonstrated. The method, based on the coupling of spatial map imaging (SMI) with velocity map imaging (VMI), aided beams visualization, through interrogation of the ionization signal of different species in a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This approach is very effective for alignment and for evaluating the spatial overlap of laser beams with a molecular beam. This was demonstrated by monitoring the resonant two-photon ionization spectrum of 2-phenylethylamine (PEA) monomer and its hydrated (PEA-H₂O) cluster and the ionization-loss stimulated Raman spectrum of the cluster, via VMIs accumulation, as a function of the exciting laser wavelength. The former permitted immediate classification of the features in the spectrum, corresponding to the molecular ion or the cluster. The proposed methodology will be useful in other challenging multiple laser beam experiments for spectroscopic studies and is expected to improve extensively their outcome.

Gas-Phase Infrared Spectroscopy of Neutral Peptides: Insights from the Far-IR and THz Domain

Gas-phase, double resonance IR spectroscopy has proven to be an excellent approach to obtain structural information on peptides ranging from single amino acids to large peptides and peptide clusters. In this review, we discuss the state-of-the-art of infrared action spectroscopy of peptides in the far-IR and THz regime. An introduction to the field of far-IR spectroscopy is given, thereby highlighting the opportunities that are provided for gas-phase research on neutral peptides. Current experimental methods, including spectroscopic schemes, have been reviewed. Structural information from the experimental far-IR spectra can be obtained with the help of suitable theoretical approaches such as dynamical DFT techniques and the recently developed Graph Theory. The aim of this review is to underline how the synergy between far-IR spectroscopy and theory can provide an unprecedented picture of the structure of neutral biomolecules in the gas phase. The far-IR signatures of the discussed studies are summarized in a far-IR map, in order to gain insight into the origin of the far-IR localized and delocalized motions present in peptides and where they can be found in the electromagnetic spectrum.