The polarizing optical microscope has been used since the 19th century to study the structural anisotropy of materials, based on the phenomenon of optical birefringence. In contrast, the phenomenon of x-ray birefringence has been demonstrated only recently and has been shown to be a sensitive probe of the orientational properties of individual molecules and/or bonds in anisotropic solids. Here, we report a technique-x-ray birefringence imaging (XBI)-that enables spatially resolved mapping of x-ray birefringence of materials, representing the x-ray analog of the polarizing optical microscope. Our results demonstrate the utility and potential of XBI as a sensitive technique for imaging the local orientational properties of anisotropic materials, including characterization of changes in molecular orientational ordering associated with solid-state phase transitions and identification of the size, spatial distribution, and temperature dependence of domain structures.

The application of in situ techniques for investigating crystallization processes promises to yield significant new insights into fundamental aspects of crystallization science. With this motivation, we recently developed a new in situ solid-state NMR technique that exploits the ability of NMR to selectively detect the solid phase in heterogeneous solid-liquid systems (of the type that exist during crystallization from solution), with the liquid phase "invisible" to the measurement. As a consequence, the technique allows the first solid particles produced during crystallization to be observed and identified, and allows the evolution of different solid phases (e.g., polymorphs) present during the crystallization process to be monitored as a function of time. This in situ solid-state NMR strategy has been demonstrated to be a powerful approach for establishing the sequence of solid phases produced during crystallization and for the discovery of new polymorphs. The most recent advance of the in situ NMR methodology has been the development of a strategy (named "CLASSIC NMR") that allows both solid-state NMR and liquid-state NMR spectra to be measured (essentially simultaneously) during the crystallization process, yielding information on the complementary changes that occur in both the solid and liquid phases as a function of time. In this article, we present new results that highlight the application of our in situ NMR techniques to successfully unravel different aspects of crystallization processes, focusing on: (i) the application of a CLASSIC NMR approach to monitor competitive inclusion processes in solid urea inclusion compounds, (ii) exploiting liquid-state NMR to gain insights into co-crystal formation between benzoic acid and pentafluorobenzoic acid, and (iii) applications of in situ solid-state NMR for the discovery of new solid forms of trimethylphosphine oxide and L-phenylalanine. Finally, the article discusses a number of important fundamental issues relating to practical aspects, the interpretation of results and the future scope of these techniques, including: (i) an assessment of the smallest size of solid particle that can be detected in in situ solid-state NMR studies of crystallization, (ii) an appraisal of whether the rapid sample spinning required by the NMR measurement technique may actually influence or perturb the crystallization behaviour, and (iii) a discussion of factors that influence the sensitivity and time-resolution of in situ solid-state NMR experiments.

The development of in-situ techniques for exploring details of crystallization processes from solution promises to yield significant new insights on fundamental aspects of such processes. With this motivation, we have developed new in-situ solid-state NMR techniques [1-6] that exploit the ability of NMR to selectively detect the solid phase in heterogeneous solid/liquid systems (of the type that exist during crystallization from solution), with the liquid phase "invisible" to the measurement. The technique allows the first solid particles produced during crystallization to be observed and identified, and allows the evolution of different solid phases (e.g. polymorphs) to be monitored as a function of time. This in-situ NMR strategy has been shown to be a powerful approach for establishing the sequence of solid phases produced during crystallization and for the discovery of new polymorphs. A recent development of this in-situ NMR technique [4] exploits the fact that NMR can study both the liquid phase and the solid phase in heterogeneous solid/liquid systems using the same instrument, simply by changing the pulse sequence. By alternating between two different pulse sequences during an in-situ NMR study of crystallization, alternate solid-state NMR and liquid-state NMR spectra are recorded, yielding essentially simultaneous information on the time-evolution of both the solid phase and the liquid phase. This new strategy is called CLASSIC NMR (Combined Liquid-And Solid-State In-situ Crystallization NMR). We have shown that the CLASSIC NMR strategy significantly extends the scope and capability of in-situ NMR monitoring of crystallization processes, particularly by providing complementary information on the changes occurring in both the solid and liquid phases as a function of time. The lecture will give an overview of in-situ solid-state NMR techniques for the study of crystallization processes, and the current state-of-the-art in the application of these techniques will be demonstrated by wide-ranging examples from our recent research in this field. In addition to highlighting the successes achieved in the application of the "NMR Crystallization" approach, challenges in extending the future scope of the methodology [5] will also be discussed.

This chapter focuses on chemical reactions occurring within solid organic inclusion compounds, encompassing a broad range of inclusion compounds and a wide variety of different reaction types, including reactions of the guest molecules (such as dimerization, polymerization, cyclization, isomerization, and decomposition), reactions involving the host molecules, and guest exchange processes. In many cases, chemical transformations of guest molecules confined within solid host structures proceed with a high degree of selectivity toward a single product, and often with a high degree of stereoselectivity and/or enantioselectivity, as a consequence of the geometrical constraints imposed on the reacting molecules by the host structure. For this reason, the products obtained from such reactions are often significantly different from those obtained from the corresponding reactions in the solution state or in the “pure” crystalline phase of the guest molecules. Through the examples highlighted in this chapter, general issues relating to reactions in solid organic inclusion compounds are rationalized and discussed.

While the phenomenon of birefringence is well-established in the case of visible radiation and is exploited in many fields (e.g., through the use of the polarizing optical microscope), the analogous phenomenon for X-rays has been a virtually neglected topic. Here, we demonstrate the scope and potential for exploiting X-ray birefringence to determine the orientational properties of specific types of bonds in solids. Specifically, orientational characteristics of C-Br bonds in the bromocyclohexane/thiourea inclusion compound are elucidated from X-ray birefringence measurements at energies close to the bromine K-edge, revealing inter alia the changes in the orientational distribution of the C-Br bonds associated with a low-temperature order-disorder phase transition. From fitting a theoretical model to the experimental data, reliable quantitative information on the orientational properties of the C-Br bonds is determined. The experimental strategy reported here represents the basis of a new approach for gaining insights into the orientational properties of molecules in anisotropic materials.