Publication Date:
2020-06-15
Description:
Infrared spectroscopic study of neutral water clusters is crucial to understanding of the hydrogen-bonding networks in liquid water and ice. Here we report infrared spectra of size-selected neutral water clusters, (H2O)n(n= 3−6), in the OH stretching vibration region, based on threshold photoionization using a tunable vacuum ultraviolet free-electron laser. Distinct OH stretch vibrational fundamentals observed in the 3,500−3,600-cm−1region of (H2O)5provide unique spectral signatures for the formation of a noncyclic pentamer, which coexists with the global-minimum cyclic structure previously identified in the gas phase. The main features of infrared spectra of the pentamer and hexamer, (H2O)n(n= 5 and 6), span the entire OH stretching band of liquid water, suggesting that they start to exhibit the richness and diversity of hydrogen-bonding networks in bulk water.
Print ISSN:
0027-8424
Electronic ISSN:
1091-6490
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
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