Raman Spectroscopy

Relevant Publications

Probing single-walled carbon nanotube defect chemistry using resonance Raman spectroscopy

Authors Wissam A. Saidi and Patrick Norman
 
The optical properties, including UV-vis spectra and resonance Raman profiles, of pristine and defected single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are computed using state-of-the-art time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) as implemented using the Liouville–Lanczos approach to linear-response TDDFT. The CNT defects were of the form of Stone–Wales and diatom-vacancies. Our results are in very good agreement with experimental results where defects were introduced into a part of defect-free CNTs. In particular, we show that the first and second ?–?* excitation energies are barely shifted due to the defects and associated with a relatively small reduction in the maxima of the absorption bands. In contrast, the resonance Raman spectra show close to an order of magnitude reduction in intensities, offering a means to distinguish between pristine and defected SWCNTs even at low defect concentrations.
Defects are ubiquitous in carbon nanotubes (CNTs), despite their large formation energies, and have astounding effects on their physicochemical properties. In this study, we employ density-functional theory (DFT) calculations to study systematically the atomic structure, stability, and characteristic vibrations of pristine and defected zigzag CNTs, where the defects are of the form of Stone–Wales (SW) and diatom vacancies (DV). The DFT optimized structures and the phonon modes are subsequently used in conjunction with a semiempirical bond-polarization model to study the nonresonant Raman spectra. For each defect type, we find two CNT structures with defects parallel or oblique to the tube axis. For the SW defects, the two structures have similar formation energies, whereas for the DV defect, only defects parallel to the tube axis are likely to exist. The results show that the defects induce a blue shift in the radial breathing mode (RBM) of metallic CNTs, whereas this mode is not shifted for semiconducting CNTs. However, the RBM shift or its Raman profile is not sensitive to the defect type. The G-band showed more sensitivity to the defects in the form of a red/blue shift in the frequency, or a partial/complete defragmentation of the G bands.

Non-additivity of polarizabilities and van der Waals C6 coefficients of fullerenes

Authors Joanna Kauczor, Patrick Norman and Wissam A. Saidi
 
We present frequency-dependent polarizabilities and C 6 dipole-dipole dispersion coefficients for a wide range of fullerene molecules including C60, C70, C78, C80, C82, and C84. The static and dynamic polarizabilities at imaginary frequencies are computed using time-dependent Hartree-Fock, B3LYP, and CAM-B3LYP ab initio methods by employing the complex linear polarization propagator and are subsequently utilized to determine the C 6 coefficients using the Casimir-Polder relation. Overall, the C60 and C70 average static polarizabilities ???(0) agree to better than 2% with linear-response coupled-cluster single double and experimental benchmark results, and the C 6 coefficient of C60 agrees to better than 1% with the best accepted value. B3LYP provides the best agreement with benchmark results with deviations less than 0.1% in ???(0) and C 6. We find that the static polarizabilities and the C 6 coefficients are non-additive, and scale, respectively, as N 1.2 and N 2.2 with the number of carbon atoms in the fullerene molecule. The exponent for C 6 power-dependence on N is much smaller than the value predicted recently based on a classical-metallic spherical-shell approximation of the fullerenes.

Resonance Raman Spectra of TNT and RDX Using Vibronic Theory, Excited-State Gradient, and Complex Polarizability Approximations

Authors W. A. Al-Saidi, Sanford A. Asher, and Patrick Norman
 
Geometries, UV absorption bands, and resonance Raman (RR) cross sections of TNT and RDX are investigated using density functional theory (DFT) in conjunction with the Coulomb attenuated B3LYP exchange-correlation functional. The absorption and RR spectra are determined with use of vibronic (VB) theory, excited-state gradient, and complex polarizability (CPP) approximations. We examined low-energy isomers (two for TNT and four for RDX) whose energies differ by less than 1 kcal/mol, such that they would appreciably be populated at room temperature. The two TNT isomers differ by an internal rotation of the methyl group, while the four conformers of RDX differ by the arrangements of the nitro group relative to the ring. Our theoretical optical properties of the TNT and RDX isomers are in excellent agreement with experimental and recent CCSD-EOM results, respectively. For the two TNT isomers, the ultraviolet RR (UVRR) spectra are similar and in good agreement with recently measured experimental results. Additionally, the UVRR spectra computed using the excited-state and CPP approaches compare favorably with the VB theory results. On the other hand, the RR spectra of the RDX conformers differ from one another, reflecting the importance of the positioning of the NO2 groups with respect to the ring. In the gas phase or in solution, RDX would give a spectrum associated with a conformationally averaged structure. It is encouraging that the computed spectra of the conformers show similarities to recent measured RDX spectra in acetonitrile solution, and reproduce the 10-fold decrease in the absolute Raman cross sections of RDX compared to TNT for the observed 229 nm excitation. We show that in TNT and RDX vibrational bands that couple to NO2 or the ring are particularly resonance enhanced. Finally, the computed RDX spectra of the conformers present a benchmark for understanding the RR spectra of the solid-phase polymorphs of RDX.