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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Coudert, Laurent H., Pirali, Olivier, Martin-Drumel, Marie-Aline, Chahbazian, Rosemonde, Zou, Luyao, Motiyenko, Roman A., Margulès, Laurent
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.10144
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author Coudert, Laurent H.
Pirali, Olivier
Martin-Drumel, Marie-Aline
Chahbazian, Rosemonde
Zou, Luyao
Motiyenko, Roman A.
Margulès, Laurent
author_facet Coudert, Laurent H.
Pirali, Olivier
Martin-Drumel, Marie-Aline
Chahbazian, Rosemonde
Zou, Luyao
Motiyenko, Roman A.
Margulès, Laurent
contents Open-shell non-rigid molecular systems exhibiting an internal rotation are likely candidates for a coupling between the spin angular momentum of the unpaired electron and the torsional motion. This electron spin-torsion coupling lacked both an experimental validation and a theoretical modeling. Here, the first experimental observation of the electron spin-torsion coupling is reported analyzing the pure rotational spectrum at millimeter wavelengths of the CH$_3$CO radical, a $^2Σ$ open-shell molecule displaying an internal rotation of its methyl group. To account for this coupling, a specific Hamiltonian incorporating the rotational, torsional, and electronic degrees of freedom is developed and allows us to reproduce the experimental spectrum. The present demonstration of the electron spin-torsion coupling will undoubtedly be key to future investigations of large open-shell molecules exhibiting a complex internal dynamics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_10144
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Evidence for electron spin-torsion coupling in the rotational spectrum of the CH$_3$CO radical
Coudert, Laurent H.
Pirali, Olivier
Martin-Drumel, Marie-Aline
Chahbazian, Rosemonde
Zou, Luyao
Motiyenko, Roman A.
Margulès, Laurent
Chemical Physics
Open-shell non-rigid molecular systems exhibiting an internal rotation are likely candidates for a coupling between the spin angular momentum of the unpaired electron and the torsional motion. This electron spin-torsion coupling lacked both an experimental validation and a theoretical modeling. Here, the first experimental observation of the electron spin-torsion coupling is reported analyzing the pure rotational spectrum at millimeter wavelengths of the CH$_3$CO radical, a $^2Σ$ open-shell molecule displaying an internal rotation of its methyl group. To account for this coupling, a specific Hamiltonian incorporating the rotational, torsional, and electronic degrees of freedom is developed and allows us to reproduce the experimental spectrum. The present demonstration of the electron spin-torsion coupling will undoubtedly be key to future investigations of large open-shell molecules exhibiting a complex internal dynamics.
title Evidence for electron spin-torsion coupling in the rotational spectrum of the CH$_3$CO radical
topic Chemical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.10144