In this project supported by the Experimental Physical Chemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, Weltner will use electron spin resonance (ESR), electron-nuclear double-resonance (ENDOR), Raman and infrared spectroscopies to study the spectra of transient molecules, ions, and clusters trapped in low-temperature matrices consisting of rare-gas and hydrogen hosts. Transition metal, rare-earth metal, Group III, supercritical carbon dioxide, and other open-shell carbon-based molecules and their derivatives will be characterized for information about their bonding. In this study Professor Weltner will trap highly reactive species in solids at very low temperatures in order to determine their structures and measure their electrical and magnetic properties. The broad range of experimental techniques used in these investigations provides a unique and significant source of data on a broad range of molecules, ions, and clusters which is difficult to gather by other methods. Such data are important for refining theoretical calculational methods as well as for understanding such processes as heterogeneous catalysis and semiconductor manufacture.
