No abstract

MP2 and CCSD(T) complete basis set (CBS) limit relative electronic energies (DeltaE(e)) have been determined for eight low-lying structures of the water hexamer by combining explicitly correlated MP2-R12 computations with higher-order correlation corrections from CCSD(T) calculations. Higher-order correlation effects are quite substantial and increase DeltaE(e) by at least +0.19 kcal mol(-1) and as much as +0.59 kcal mol(-1). The effects from zero-point vibrational energy (ZPVE) have been assessed from unscaled harmonic vibrational frequencies computed at the MP2 level with a correlation consistent triple-zeta basis set (cc-pVTZ for H and aug-cc-pVTZ for O). ZPVE effects are even more significant than higher-order correlation effects and are uniformly negative, decreasing the relative energies by -0.16 kcal mol(-1) to -1.61 kcal mol(-1). Although it has been widely accepted that the cage becomes the lowest-energy structure after ZPVE effects are included [Nature 1996, 381, 501-503], the prism is consistently the most stable structure in this work, lying 0.06 kcal mol(-1) below the nearly isoenergetic cage isomer at the electronic MP2 CBS limit, 0.25 kcal mol(-1) below at the electronic CCSD(T) CBS limit, and 0.09 kcal mol(-1) below at the harmonic ZPVE corrected CCSD(T) CBS limit. Moreover, application of any uniform scaling factor less than unity to correct for anharmonicity further stabilizes the prism and increases the relative energies of the other structures.

Ten stationary points on the water dimer potential energy surface have been characterized with the coupled-cluster technique which includes all single and double excitations as well as a perturbative approximation of triple excitations [CCSD(T)]. Using a triple-ζ basis set with two sets of polarization functions augmented with higher angular momentum and diffuse functions [TZ2P(f,d)+dif], the fully optimized geometries and harmonic vibrational frequencies of these ten stationary points were determined at the CCSD(T) theoretical level. In agreement with other ab initio investigations, only one of these ten stationary points is a true minimum. Of the other nine structures, three are transition structures, and the remaining are higher order saddle points. These high-level ab initio results indicate that the lowest lying transition state involved in hydrogen interchange is chiral, of C1 symmetry rather than Cs as suggested by recently developed 6D potential energy surfaces. The one- and n-particle limits of the electronic energies of these ten stationary points were probed by systematic variation of the atomic orbital basis sets and the treatment of electron correlation within the framework of the focal-point analysis of Allen and co-workers. The one-particle limit was approached via extrapolation of electronic energies computed with the augmented correlation consistent basis sets (aug-cc-pVXZ, X=D−6), and, independently, by estimating the basis set incompleteness effect with the explicitly-correlated second-order Møller-Plesset method (MP2-R12). Electron correlation was evaluated at levels as high as the Brueckner coupled cluster method with double excitations and perturbatively treated triple and quadruple excitations [BD(TQ)]. Core correlation and relativistic effects were also assessed. Consideration of the aforementioned electronic effects as well as basis set superposition error leads to an estimate of 21.0 kJ mol−1 for the electronic dissociation energy of (H2O)2.

Infrared cavity ringdown laser absorption spectroscopy has been used to study the O-H stretching vibrations of jet-cooled methanol clusters in direct absorption. Rovibrational bands for (CH 3 OH) 2 , (CH 3 OH) 3 , and (CH 3 OH) 4 have been measured. Both bonded and free O-H stretches were measured for the dimer, indicating that its structure is linear. Five bands were assigned to the methanol trimer, indicating the presence of a second cyclic isomer in the molecular beam. A detailed study of the free O-H stretching region shows that methanol clusters larger than dimer must exist in cyclic ring configurations. In order to facilitate spectral assignment, harmonic frequencies and infrared intensities were calculated for the methanol monomer, dimer, and trimer with second order Mo "ller-Plesset perturbation theory. Using the theoretical infrared intensities and measured vibrational band absorptions, absolute cluster concentrations were calculated. Results agree with previous experimental and theoretical work.