Prof. Robert Hinde of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville is supported by an award from the Theoretical and Computational Chemistry program for a theoretical study of parahydrogen solids containing a variety of chemical impurities which introduce new features in the infrared absorption spectrum of the host matrix. The research combines quantum Monte Carlo simulations with highly-correlated ab initio quantum calculations in an effort to simulate the positions and line shapes of these dopant-induced spectral features. The research is having a broader impact on the study of quantum molecular solids and is related to the development of enhanced propellants.
