High energy vibrational excitations of nitromethane in liquid water.

The pathways and timescales of vibrational energy flow in nitromethane are investigated in both gas and condensed phases using classical molecular mechanics, with a particular focus on relaxation in liquid water. We monitor the flow of excess energy deposited in vibrational modes of nitromethane into the surrounding solvent. A marked energy flux anisotropy is found when nitromethane is immersed in liquid water, with a preferential flow to those water molecules in contact to the nitro group.