Tailored Nitroxide Radicals and Biradical Containing 13C Enriched Acetylene Groups: ENDOR and DFT Investigation

Abstract

A specially synthesized nitroxide biradical R₅-C≡¹³C-(p-C₆H₄)₂-¹³C≡C-R₅ (B4) and two radicals, R₅-C≡¹³CH (RCC) and R₅-C≡¹³C-C₆H₅ (RCCPh), where R₅ is 1-oxyl-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-pyrroline group, have been studied by X- and W-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, and by W-band electron-nuclear double resonance (ENDOR). Spin density distribution and hyperfine splitting (hfs) constants on ¹³C atoms were experimentally determined and also calculated using ORCA 3.0.3 program package. The biradical and radicals geometries were optimized on UKS/B3LYP/cc-pVDZ level. Hfs constants were calculated using density functional theory (DFT) with PBE0 functional and N07D, and were compared with the experimental value of the hfs constant on ¹³C atoms, measured from ENDOR spectra. It is concluded that at small values of the exchange integral as J ≤ a/2 ≈ 7–8 G, the current quantum chemical approaches do not allow determining precise values of the hfs constants on the ¹³C atoms in the bridge connecting two paramagnetic nitroxide rings of the biradical.