Singlet-triplet energy gaps and the degree of diradical character in binuclear copper molecular magnets characterized by spin-flip density functional theory.

Molecular magnets, defined here as organic polyradicals, can be used as building blocks in the fabrication of novel and structurally diverse magnetic light-weight materials. We present a theoretical investigation of the lowest spin states of several binuclear copper diradicals. In contrast to previous studies, we consider not only the energetics of the low-lying states (which are related to the exchange-coupling parameter within the Heisenberg-Dirac-van-Vleck model), but also the character of the diradical states themselves.

Characterizing Bonding Patterns in Diradicals and Triradicals by Density-Based Wave Function Analysis: A Uniform Approach.

Density-based wave function analysis enables unambiguous comparisons of the electronic structure computed by different methods and removes ambiguity of orbital choices. We use this tool to investigate the performance of different spin-flip methods for several prototypical diradicals and triradicals. In contrast to previous calibration studies that focused on energy gaps between high- and low spin-states, we focus on the properties of the underlying wave functions, such as the number of effectively unpaired electrons.

Modeling Photoelectron Spectra of CuO, CuO, and CuO Anions with Equation-of-Motion Coupled-Cluster Methods: An Adventure in Fock Space.

The experimental photoelectron spectra of di- and triatomic copper oxide anions have been reported previously. We present an analysis of the experimental spectra of the CuO, CuO, and CuO anions using equation-of-motion coupled-cluster (EOM-CC) methods. The open-shell electronic structure of each molecule demands a unique combination of EOM-CC methods to achieve an accurate and balanced representation of the multiconfigurational anionic- and neutral-state manifolds.

An ab Initio Exploration of the Bergman Cyclization.

The Bergman cyclization is an important reaction in which an enediyne cyclizes to produce a highly reactive diradical species, p-benzyne. Enediyne motifs are found in natural antitumor antibiotic compounds, such as calicheammicin and dynemicin. Understanding the energetics of cyclization is required to better control the initiation of the cyclization, which induces cell death.

New algorithms for iterative matrix-free eigensolvers in quantum chemistry.

New algorithms for iterative diagonalization procedures that solve for a small set of eigen-states of a large matrix are described. The performance of the algorithms is illustrated by calculations of low and high-lying ionized and electronically excited states using equation-of-motion coupled-cluster methods with single and double substitutions (EOM-IP-CCSD and EOM-EE-CCSD). We present two algorithms suitable for calculating excited states that are close to a specified energy shift (interior eigenvalues).

Proton transfer in nucleobases is mediated by water.

Water plays a central role in chemistry and biology by mediating the interactions between molecules, altering energy levels of solvated species, modifying potential energy profiles along reaction coordinates, and facilitating efficient proton transport through ion channels and interfaces. This study investigates proton transfer in a model system comprising dry and microhydrated clusters of nucleobases. With mass spectrometry and tunable vacuum ultraviolet synchrotron radiation, we show that water shuts down ionization-induced proton transfer between nucleobases, which is very efficient in dry clusters.