Mossbauer resonance condition

A recent development in physical techniques which may be of aid in evaluating the relative merits of theory is the Mossbauer effect. This effect is based upon recoilless y-ray emission (absorption) resulting from a nuclear transition in a particular atom with the resonance condition of zero-phonon processes. Since such nuclear transitions can be obtained with... 

Mossbauer spectroscopy, which involves the resonant absorption of a y-ray photon by a nucleus. The resonant condition is achieved via the Doppler effect, by sweeping the velocity of a sample relative to the source. The chemical environment of the nucleus causes characteristic fl equency shifts. 

If the resonant atoms of the screen are identical to the researched atom (containing the excited nucleus) than we have = d - For the case when the excited nucleus is a Mossbauer one, the screen is made from Mossbauer resonant atoms and the usual condition G I, Afi I holds, at exactly resonant state o) o — + o) = 0 we have... 

For the high-energy transitions ( Gd, Yb, Np, Am) cooling of the source to liquid He temperatures (or thereabout) is essential. Even with this condition fulfilled it is difficult to obtain good spectra for absorber temperatures much above lOOK. This is a most serious restriction. Especially for Yb the use of isotopically enriched samples can be helpful. For Eu and Dy the / factors are high. The source can conveniently be kept at room temperature and absorbers may be heated well above room temperature, quite analogous to the case of the standard Mossbauer resonance, Fe. 

Of special Interest as O2 reduction electrocatalysts are the transition metal macrocycles In the form of layers adsorptlvely attached, chemically bonded or simply physically deposited on an electrode substrate Some of these complexes catalyze the 4-electron reduction of O2 to H2O or 0H while others catalyze principally the 2-electron reduction to the peroxide and/or the peroxide elimination reactions. Various situ spectroscopic techniques have been used to examine the state of these transition metal macrocycle layers on carbon, graphite and metal substrates under various electrochemical conditions. These techniques have Included (a) visible reflectance spectroscopy (b) laser Raman spectroscopy, utilizing surface enhanced Raman scattering and resonant Raman and (c) Mossbauer spectroscopy. This paper will focus on principally the cobalt and Iron phthalocyanlnes and porphyrins. 

A unique situation is encountered if Fe-M6ssbauer spectroscopy is applied for the study of spin-state transitions in iron complexes. The half-life of the excited state of the Fe nucleus involved in the Mossbauer experiment is tj/2 = 0.977 X 10 s which is related to the decay constant k by tj/2 = ln2/fe. The lifetime t = l//c is therefore = 1.410 x 10 s which value is just at the centre of the range estimated for the spin-state lifetime Tl = I/Zclh- Thus both the situations discussed above are expected to appear under suitable conditions in the Mossbauer spectra. The quantity of importance is here the nuclear Larmor precession frequency co . If the spin-state lifetime Tl = 1/feLH is long relative to the nuclear precession time l/co , i.e. Tl > l/o) , individual and sharp resonance lines for the two spin states are observed. On the other hand, if the spin-state lifetime is short and thus < l/o) , averaged spectra with intermediate values of quadrupole splitting A q and isomer shift 5 are found. For the intermediate case where Tl 1/cl , broadened and asymmetric resonance lines are obtained. These may be the subject of a lineshape analysis that will eventually produce values of rate constants for the dynamic spin-state inter-conversion process. The rate constants extracted from the spectra will be necessarily of the order of 10 -10 s"F... 

Several factors have contributed to this goal in the recent past development of electrochemical techniques for the study of complex reactions at solid electrodes, use of physical methods such as ESCA, Auger, LEED, etc. for the study of surfaces in the ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) environment and in situ techniques under the same conditions as the electrode reaction. Ellipsometry, electroreflectance, Mossbauer, enhanced Raman, infrared, electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopies and measurement of surface resistance and local changes of pH at surfaces were incorporated to the study of electrode kinetics. 

The absolute velocity imparted to the drive shaft can be determined either directly or indirectly (30, 32, 87, 88). In the latter technique, the spectrum of a compound with well-established Mossbauer parameters is collected, and to the positions in the spectrum where resonances appear, specific absolute velocities can be assigned. The velocities at other positions in the spectrum are then inferred by interpolation between these known velocities. This indirect calibration is then used in the interpretation of other spectra obtained with the same drive unit. Unfortunately, compounds with well-established Mossbauer parameters may not be available for the Mossbauer isotope of interest. For 57Fe, however, this is not a problem, and metallic iron foils and sodium nitroprusside are often used for calibration purposes. Thus, the 57Fe resonance may be used to calibrate the drive unit, and this unit can then be used to study other Mossbauer isotopes if the drive unit is operated under identical conditions. 

Thus, the emitting and absorbing atoms have to be embedded in solids and both have to be kept at low temperatures, in order to measure recoilless resonance absorption of y rays. These are essential conditions for Mossbauer spectrometry. 

The hydroxides of berklium(III), Bk(OH)3, and califomium(III), Cf(OH)s, behave in a similar fashion [3]. In their crystalline forms, Am(OH)s and Cm(OH)3 are anhydrous (as are hydroxides of light rare-earth elements), and are hexagonal, C 6h P s/m space group, a = 6.420 and 6.391 A, c = 3.745 and 3.712 A, for Am and Cm compounds, respectively. Due to self-irradiation, the unit-cell parameters increase with time, as does the sample amorphization. In the case of " Cm(OH)3, the stmcture decomposes within 1 day, but the same process for " Am(OH)3 takes up to 4-6 months [4]. The Mossbauer spectrum of Am(OH)3 [5] is characterized by 5 = 4.6 cm/c (relative to Am02). The nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies indicate that, among the TUE(III) hydroxides, the Am compound has the most covalent chemical bonds. The TUE(III) hydroxides are readily soluble in different mineral acids under these conditions, the solutions of hydrated An ions are produced. 

The Mossbauer effect is the emission and resonant absorption of nuclear y-rays studied under conditions such that the nuclei have negligible recoil velocities when y-rays are emitted or absorbed. This is only achieved by working with solid samples in which the nuclei are held rigidly in a crystal lattice. The energy, and thus the frequency of the y-radiation involved, corresponds to the transition between the ground state and the short-lived excited state of the nuclide concerned. Table 2.4 lists properties of several nuclei which can be observed using Mdssbauer spectroscopy. 

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