Non-relativistic eigensolutions of molecular and heavy quarkonia interacting potentials via the Nikiforov Uvarov method

In this paper, the analytical eigensolutions of the radial Schrödinger equation are obtained using the Nikiforov Uvarov method. Special cases of the modeled potential were discussed. The energy eigenvalues expressions for both quarkonia and diatomic molecular interacting systems are obtained. Furthermore, the masses of the charmonium and bottomonium mesons were computed. The vibrational energy levels, inertia rotational constant, and first two centrifugal distortion constants of the Kratzer–Fues oscillator were obtained in closed form. The results obtained are in excellent agreement with the results in the literature.

Molecular Parameters of Tert-Butyl Chloride and Its Isotopologues Determined from High-Resolution Rotational Spectroscopy

A broadband chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave spectrometer was used to detect the rotational spectra of the products of a chemical reaction in the gas phase from 1-18 GHz under the supersonic expansion condition. In natural abundance, pure rotational energy level transitions of tert-butyl chloride and its isotopologues (13C, 37Cl) were observed and assigned. The rotational spectral parameters (rotational constant, quadrupole coupling constant and centrifugal distortion constant) of these isotopologues were determined. The experimental results are in great agreement with the calculated values of quantum chemistry and the spectral parameters in the literature. The accuracy and the capability for chemical detection of our homemade rotational spectrometer were verified by this experiment.

Tentative detection of HC5NH+ in TMC-1

Using the Yebes 40m radio telescope, we report the detection of a series of seven lines harmonically related with a rotational constant B0 = 1295.81581 ± 0.00026MHz and a distortion constant D0 = 27.3 ± 0.5Hz towards the cold dense cloud TMC-1. Ab initio calculations indicate that the best possible candidates are the cations HC5NH+ and NC4NH+. From a comparison between calculated and observed rotational constants and other arguments based on proton affinities and dipole moments, we conclude that the best candidate for a carrier of the observed lines is the protonated cyanodiacetylene cation, HC5NH+. The HC5N/HC5NH+ ratio derived in TMC-1 is 240, which is very similar to the HC3N/HC3NH+ ratio. Results are discussed in the framework of a chemical model for protonated molecules in cold dense clouds.

Discovery of HC3O+ in space: The chemistry of O-bearing species in TMC-1

Using the Yebes 40m and IRAM 30m radio telescopes, we detected a series of harmonically related lines with a rotational constant B0 = 4460.590 ± 0.001 MHz and a distortion constant D0 = 0.511 ± 0.005 kHz towards the cold dense core TMC-1. High-level-of-theory ab initio calculations indicate that the best possible candidate is protonated tricarbon monoxide, HC3O+. We have succeeded in producing this species in the laboratory and observed its Ju − Jl = 2–1 and 3–2 rotational transitions. Hence, we report the discovery of HC3O+ in space based on our observations, theoretical calculations, and laboratory experiments. We derive an abundance ratio N(C3O)/N(HC3O+) ∼ 7. The high abundance of the protonated form of C3O is due to the high proton affinity of the neutral species. The chemistry of O-bearing species is modelled, and predictions are compared to the derived abundances from our data for the most prominent O-bearing species in TMC-1.

Detection of vibrationally excited HC7N and HC9N in IRC +10216

Observations of IRC +10216 with the Yebes 40 m telescope between 31 and 50 GHz have revealed more than 150 unidentified lines. Some of them can be grouped into a new series of 26 doublets, harmonically related with integer quantum numbers ranging from Jup = 54 to 80. The separation of the doublets increases systematically with J, that is to say, as expected for a linear species in one of its bending modes. The rotational parameters resulting from the fit to these data are B = 290.8844 ± 0.0004 MHz, D = 0.88 ± 0.04 Hz, and q = 0.1463 ± 0.0001 MHz. The rotational constant is very close to that of the ground state of HC9N. Our ab initio calculations show an excellent agreement between these parameters and those predicted for the lowest energy vibrationally excited state, ν19 = 1, of HC9N. This is the first detection, and complete characterization in space, of vibrationally excited HC9N. An energy of 41.5 cm−1 is estimated for the ν19 state. In addition, 17 doublets of HC7N in the ν15 = 1 state, for which laboratory spectroscopy is available, were detected for the first time in IRC +10216. Several doublets of HC5N in its ν11 = 1 state were also observed. The column density ratio between the ground and the lowest excited vibrational states are ≈127, 9.5, and 1.5 for HC5N, HC7N, and HC9N, respectively. We find that these lowest-lying vibrational states are most probably populated via infrared pumping to vibrationally excited states lying at ≈600 cm−1. The lowest vibrationally excited states thus need to be taken into account to precisely determine absolute abundances and abundance ratios for long carbon chains. The abundance ratios N(HC5N)/N(HC7N) and N(HC7N)/N(HC9N) are 2.4 and 7.7, respectively.

Linear and bent triatomic molecules are not qualitatively different!

I, and other authors, have discussed in several recent publications that “linear” triatomic molecules (defined as having linear equilibrium structures) are necessarily observed as being bent on ro-vibrational average. We have demonstrated this theoretically by calculations of the rotation–vibration expectation values, [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] is the bond angle supplement, [Formula: see text] being the instantaneous value of the bond angle of the triatomic molecule A–B–C. Direct experimental evidence of bent average structures has been obtained by other authors in Coulomb explosion imaging experiments, and indirect evidence from re-interpretation of experimentally derived rotational constant values. In spite of a rather significant amount of evidence in support of the bent average structures, the idea has been heavily criticized. In the present work I discuss in more detail some of the arguments for the bent average structures put forward in previous papers, and I hope to correct and clarify some of the misunderstandings leading to the criticisms. Part of the criticism originates in a widespread, but fallacious, belief among spectroscopists that linear and bent chain molecules have qualitatively different energy-level and spectral intensity patterns. This is not true. One can view the linear-molecule energy level and spectral patterns as limiting cases of the bent-molecule ones.

Frequency-comb spectroscopy on pure quantum states of a single molecular ion

Spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying molecules and is commonly performed on large thermal molecular ensembles that are perturbed by motional shifts and interactions with the environment and one another, resulting in convoluted spectra and limited resolution. Here, we use quantum-logic techniques to prepare a trapped molecular ion in a single quantum state, drive terahertz rotational transitions with an optical frequency comb, and read out the final state nondestructively, leaving the molecule ready for further manipulation. We can resolve rotational transitions to 11 significant digits and derive the rotational constant of 40CaH+ to be BR = 142 501 777.9(1.7) kilohertz. Our approach is suited for a wide range of molecular ions, including polyatomics and species relevant for tests of fundamental physics, chemistry, and astrophysics.

Discovery of two new magnesium-bearing species in IRC+10216: MgC3N and MgC4H

We report on the detection of two series of harmonically related doublets in IRC +10216. From the observed frequencies, the rotational constant of the first series is B = 1380.888 MHz and that of the second series is B = 1381.512 MHz. The two series correspond to two species with a 2Σ electronic ground state. After considering all possible candidates, and based on quantum chemical calculations, the first series is assigned to MgC3N and the second to MgC4H. For the latter species, optical spectroscopy measurements support its identification. Unlike diatomic metal-containing molecules, the line profiles of the two new molecules indicate that they are formed in the outer layers of the envelope, as occurs for MgNC and other polyatomic metal-cyanides. We also confirm the detection of MgCCH that was previously reported from the observation of two doublets. The relative abundance of MgC3N with respect to MgNC is close to one while that of MgC4H relative to MgCCH is about ten. The synthesis of these magnesium cyanides and acetylides in IRC +10216 can be explained in terms of a two-step process initiated by the radiative association of Mg+ with large cyanopolyynes and polyynes followed by the dissociative recombination of the ionic complexes.

Applying ab initio Calculations to Theoretically Investigate the Electronic Structure of the Calcium Sulfide Molecule CaS

Using the graphical user interface GABEDIT and the computational chemistry software MOLPRO, the ab initio calculation method has been applied to explore 25 low-lying singlet and triplet electronic states, including the X1Σ+ ground state, of the calcium sulfide molecule CaS in the 2s+1Λ± representation. The multi-reference configuration interaction with Davidson correction (MRCI+Q) and the complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) calculations were performed to obtain the potential energy curves in terms of the internuclear distance R. The permanent dipole moments μe of these low-lying electronic states of CaS have been investigated, in addition to the corresponding spectroscopic constants (including the electronic energy with respect to the ground state Te, the equilibrium internuclear distance Re, the harmonic vibrational frequency ωe, the rotational constant Be, and the equilibrium dissociation energy De). In the present work, 19 new singlet and triplet CaS electronic states were investigated for the first time. In addition, it is noticeable that the current results and those already available in literature are in good agreement.