Knowledge Bank

Fourier transform ionization detected stimulated Raman spectroscopy (FT-IDSRS) is a powerful technique for obtaining high resolution Raman spectra of species in molecular beams. We have used this technique to study a wide variety of complexes of phenol (i.e. phenol-Ar, $-N2,-CH4,-H2O,-NH3$, -benzene) and benzene (i.e. benzene-Ar, $-N2,-CH4,-CO2)$. One of the principle advantages of FT-IDSRS over conventional frequency domain techniques is that absolute line positions can be routinely measured with high precision. This feature of FT-IDSRS has been used to obtain accurate values for the shifts of the fundamental vibrational frequencies of phenol and benzene that occur upon complexation. In this talk we will present a short explanation of FT-IDSRS and a summary of the experimental results that we have obtained so far. The observed shifts of the vibrational frequencies are related to the strength and type of intermolecular interaction in the complex.