A study of molecular motion in tetramethylphosphonium halides by proton magnetic resonance

Abstract

Spin–lattice relaxation times of tetramethylphosphonium chloride, bromide, and iodide were measured between 100 and 500 K and the two minima in T1 found for each compound have been assigned to methyl group reorientation and whole cation tumbling. The second moments also indicate that the cations are tumbling isotropically at nmr frequencies in the upper half of this temperature range, and suggest that librational oscillation of the whole cation occurs at frequencies at least of the order of 105 s−1 near 150 K. The energy barriers for both methyl group reorientation and isotropic tumbling decrease from chloride to bromide but increase when one goes from bromide to iodide. Powder photograph X-ray diffraction analysis indicates that the chloride and bromide have hexagonal crystal structures (a and c measured), but that the iodide has lower, undetermined symmetry.