A new polarizing agent with superior performance in dynamic nuclear polarization experiments is introduced, and utilizes two TEMPO (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl) moieties connected through a rigid spiro tether (see structure). The observed NMR signal intensities were enhanced by a factor of 1.4 compared to those of TOTAPOL, a previously described TEMPO-based biradical with a flexible tether.

ABSTRACT:A new biradical polarizing agent, bTbtk-py, for dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) experiments in aqueous media is reported. The synthesis is discussed in light of the requirements of the optimum, theoretical, biradical system. To date, the DNP NMR signal enhancement resulting from bTbtk-py is the largest of any biradical in the ideal glycerol/water solvent matrix, ε = 230. EPR and X-ray crystallography are used to characterize the molecule and suggest approaches for further optimizing the biradical distance and relative orientation.

The synthesis and characterization of oxidized bis-thioketal-trispiro dinitroxide biradicals that orient the nitroxides in a rigid, approximately orthogonal geometry is reported. The biradicals show better performance as polarizing agents in dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) NMR experiments as compared to biradicals lacking the constrained geometry. In addition, the biradicals display improved solubility in aqueous media due to the presence of polar sulfoxides. The results suggest that the orientation of the radicals is not dramatically affected by the oxidation state of the sulfur atoms in the biradical, and we conclude that a biradical polarizing agent containing a mixture of oxidation states can be used for improved solubility without a loss in performance.