Chemical Physics

2D-IR methods offer direct access to information that is hard to obtain using other spectroscopic techniques such as IR absorption or Raman (see Theory). Studies on even the simplest organic compounds yield interesting and novel results, some of which can be extended to systems of biological relevance. Having easier access to information about vibrational modes and their couplings allows structure, environment and dynamics studies of systems of greater complexity to be performed.

Publication: Donaldson M. P., Guo R. & al, J. Chem. Phys., 2007, 127, 114513.

Chemical Analysis

Using 2D-IR methods, vibrational spectra are decongested and simplified, for certain types of samples making chemical analysis more straightforward than with other methods.

Shown in figure 1 is an IR absorption spectrum of benzene dissolved in octane in a 1:10 mol% ratio.

Figure1.

The benzene ring breathing band at 1480 cm-1 can not be isolated from the aliphatic deformation modes of the octane. Shown in figure 2 is a DOVE 2D-IR FWM spectrum of the mixture.

Figure 2.

The benzene ring breathing cross peak is easily separated from the octane aliphatic bands in two dimensions.

DOVE 2D-IR is a robust method easily giving spectra from optically dense and scattering samples such as plastics. Figure 3 shows DOVE-2D-IR spectra of a range of common plastics.

Figure 3.