Dressed states of molecules and microwave–infrared double-resonance spectroscopic techniques employing an electric quadrupole focusing field

Experimental Observation of the Autler-Townes Splitting in Polyatomic Molecules

Autler-Townes (AT) splitting has been experimentally observed in the optical transition between the zero-point levels of S₁ and S₀ for supersonically cooled 2-methoxythiophenol, 2-fluorothiophenol, and 2-chlorothiophenol. This is the first experimental observation of the light-dressed quantum states of polyatomic molecules (N > 3) in the electronic transition. In the resonance-enhanced ionization process involving the optically coupled states, if Rabi cycling is ensured within the nanosecond laser pulse, AT splitting is clearly observed for the open system for which the excited-state lifetime is shorter than hundreds of picoseconds. Semiclassical optical Bloch equations and a dressed-atom approach based on the three-level atomic model describe the experiment quite well, giving deep insights into the light-matter interaction in polyatomic molecular systems.

Nonstatistical Reaction Dynamics

Nonstatistical dynamics is important for many chemical reactions. The Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus (RRKM) theory of unimolecular kinetics assumes a reactant molecule maintains a statistical microcanonical ensemble of vibrational states during its dissociation so that its unimolecular dynamics are time independent. Such dynamics results when the reactant's atomic motion is chaotic or irregular. Intrinsic non-RRKM dynamics occurs when part of the reactant's phase space consists of quasiperiodic/regular motion and a bottleneck exists, so that the unimolecular rate constant is time dependent. Nonrandom excitation of a molecule may result in short-time apparent non-RRKM dynamics. For rotational activation, the 2J + 1 K levels for a particular J may be highly mixed, making K an active degree of freedom, or K may be a good quantum number and an adiabatic degree of freedom. Nonstatistical dynamics is often important for bimolecular reactions and their intermediates and for product-energy partitioning of bimolecular and unimolecular reactions. Post–transition state dynamics is often highly complex and nonstatistical.

AC Stark Effect Observed in a Microwave-Millimeter/Submillimeter Wave Double-Resonance Experiment

Microwave-millimeter/submillimeter wave double-resonance spectroscopy has been developed with the use of technology typically employed in chirped pulse Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy and fast-sweep direct absorption (sub)millimeter-wave spectroscopy. This technique offers the high sensitivity provided by millimeter/submillimeter fast-sweep techniques with the rapid data acquisition offered by chirped pulse Fourier transform microwave spectrometers. Rather than detecting the movement of population as is observed in a traditional double-resonance experiment, instead we detected the splitting of spectral lines arising from the AC Stark effect. This new technique will prove invaluable when assigning complicated rotational spectra of complex molecules. The experimental design is presented along with the results from the double-resonance spectra of methanol as a proof-of-concept for this technique.

Direct Signatures of Light-Induced Conical Intersections on the Field-Dressed Spectrum of Na2

Rovibronic spectra of the field-dressed homonuclear diatomic Na₂ molecule are investigated to identify direct signatures of the light-induced conical intersection (LICI) on the spectrum. The theoretical framework formulated allows the computation of the (1) field-dressed rovibronic states induced by a medium-intensity continuous-wave laser light and the (2) transition amplitudes between these field-dressed states with respect to an additional weak probe pulse. The field-dressed spectrum features absorption peaks resembling the field-free spectrum as well as stimulated emission peaks corresponding to transitions not visible in the field-free case. By investigating the dependence of the field-dressed spectra on the dressing-field wavelength, in both full- and reduced-dimensional simulations, direct signatures of the LICI can be identified. These signatures include (1) the appearance of new peaks and the splitting of peaks for both absorption and stimulated emission and (2) the manifestation of an intensity-borrowing effect in the field-dressed spectrum.

Decoding the dynamical information embedded in highly mixed quantum states

The standard description of the vibrational and rotational motion of polyatomic molecules, as expressed by the distortable rotor/harmonic oscillator approximation, provides an adequate description of the molecular quantum states only in regions of low total state density. When the total state density is large, exceeding 100 states/cm(-1), the vibrational dynamics are "dissipative" and the fundamental process of intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution is operative. The presence of intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution leads to molecular quantum states of a qualitatively different nature. With respect to a normal-mode vibrational basis, these quantum states are "highly mixed" in their vibrational character and represent nuclear motion that is a combination of all the normal-mode motions. This review describes frequency domain spectroscopy techniques designed to probe the vibrational, rotational, and structural composition of these eigenstates. Recent work that investigates spectroscopy between highly mixed states is also reviewed.

Intramolecular Vibrational Dynamics of the Asymmetric &dbond;CH2 Hydride Stretch of Isobutene

The eigenstate-resolved, high-resolution (5 MHz) infrared spectrum of the asymmetric &dbond;CH2 hydride stretch of isobutene has been measured using an electric resonance optothermal spectrometer (EROS). This vibrational band near 3087 cm-1 was rotationally assigned with ground state microwave-infrared double-resonance spectroscopy. IVR rates from rotationally homogeneous IVR multiplets at values of total angular momentum, J ranging from J = 0 to J = 3 and Ka values of Ka = 0 to Ka = 2, were obtained. The average IVR lifetime for this vibrational mode is 105 ps and independent of rotational state. The experimental state density of the rotationless 000 vibrational state, approximately 150 states/cm-1, is in good agreement with the direct count result of 99 states/cm-1 using the C+3 v multiply sign in circle C-3 v (G36) molecular symmetry group. The lineshape profiles of the IVR multiplets are investigated in order to elucidate information concerning the dependence of IVR rates on the symmetry of the torsional wavefunction. We find that there is a common IVR rate among the various torsional symmetries. IVR lifetimes observed in the present study are compared to other asymmetric ethylenic hydride stretch IVR rates measured in our laboratory. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.

HIGH RESOLUTION SPECTROSCOPY IN THE GAS PHASE: Even Large Molecules Have Well-Defined Shapes

▪ Abstract  A review of recent high-resolution microwave, infrared, and optical spectroscopy experiments demonstrates that remarkable progress has been made in the past 20 years in determining the equilibrium geometries of large polyatomic molecules and their clusters in the gas phase, and how these geometries change when the photon is absorbed. A special focus is on the dynamical information that can be obtained from such studies, particularly of electronically excited states.