Matrix isolation spectroscopy and spectral simulations of isotopically substituted C60 molecules

Abstract

Isotopically enriched (3.5% 13C) and depleted (0.5% 13C) fullerene C60 molecules are isolated in parahydrogen (pH2) solids at cryogenic temperatures and studied by high resolution (0.01-0.1 cm-1) infrared (IR) absorption measurements. Spectra of natural isotopic abundance (1.1% 13C) C60 molecules isolated in solid pH2, orthodeuterium (oD2), and Ne matrix hosts serve to identify the relatively minor spectral perturbations due to the trapping environments. Spectral features observed for the four IR-active T1u modes of threefold degeneracy in Ih symmetry, namely, T1u(1) at 529.77 cm-1, T1u(2) at 578.24 cm-1, T1u(3) at 1184.7 cm-1, and T1u(4) at 1432 cm-1, are assigned to the superpositions of matrix perturbed vibrational-mode spectra of a number of 13Cn12C60-n isotopologues. New molecular orbital calculations show the symmetry lowering effects of 13C substitution, namely, split vibrational frequencies and modified IR intensities. IR spectral patterns calculated for the 328 distinct isotopomers of 13Cn12C60-n up to n = 3 are used to satisfactorily simulate most of the observed absorption features. For the T1u(4) mode at 1432 cm-1, the observed splitting is insensitive to the 13C abundance, indicating spectral perturbations due to Fermi resonance. Weak absorption features at 1545 cm-1 are assigned to a combination of lower frequency modes. We discuss relative and absolute band strengths for the astrophysical application of estimating C60 abundances in planetary nebulae.