This grant from the Organic Dynamics Program supports the con- tinuing research of Professor Ronald C. D. Breslow at Columbia University. An important goal of this work is to prepare stable organic materials that are ferromagnetic at room temperature. Success in this project could lead to the preparation of new materials with considerable practical potential in areas such as information storage and also could lead to increased understanding of the magnetic properties of molecules and of materials. As part of this project, new triplet species to be synthesized and studied include stabilized derivatives of benzene dication, benzene dianion, cyclopentadienyl cation, and cyclopropenyl anion. The proposed physical studies include electron spin resonance spectroscopy as a function of temperature, magnetic susceptibility, and infrared spectroscopy. In addition to their potential practical importance as a new class of magnetic materials, the organic triplet species provide an experimental basis for evaluating the structural requirements for a triplet ground state and for ferromagnetic interactions.
