Seminar at the accelerator – Rui Fausto (Coimbra University )

Speaker: Rui Fausto (CQC-IMS, Department of Chemistry, University of Coimbra, Portugal)

Title: Infrared-Induced and Tunneling-Driven Reactions in Cryogenic Matrices

Abstract: Thought first presented to the scientific community as early as in 1963 by Hall and Pimentel [1], infrared-induced chemistry of matrix-isolated molecules only gained importance when high-selectivity in controlling the chemical reactions could be achieved by introduction of narrowband IR excitation [2,3]. Since then, IR-induced chemistry has been developing and, nowadays, it can be used to control molecular conformations with both high selectivity and efficiency and also to induce (or facilitate) other types of chemistry [4,5]. At low temperature, IR-induced chemistry and tunneling are, frequently, associated (see Figure). We have been involved in this type of investigations for more than 20 years, and in this talk I will present a summary of some of our most relevant achievements in the field: (i) efficient control of the molecular conformations by means of narrowband tuneable IR excitation, including the generation of rare, elusive conformers; (ii) application of the research strategy to more complex systems, like dimers; (iii) controlling the conformation of selected fragments in a molecule by vibrationally exciting remotely located in space antennas; (iv) using vibrational excitation to facilitate or control tunneling reactions, including processes involving cleavage of chemical bonds and heavy-atom tunneling.

• Dec 11, 2023 at 11:00h
• Meeting room at CMAM. View on the map
• MsTeams: Follow the seminar in this link