Solid-state nuclear magnetic phenomenon

The usefulness of the NMR technique in solid state physics stems from the fact that the widths, splittings, and shifts of the magnetic resonance of nuclei in solids often depend in a sensitive manner on the magnetic and electrical environment of the nucleus in the solid. In this sense the nucleus can be considered as a probe by which one may ascertain certain details of the nuclear and electronic structure of the solid under investigation. Considerable attention has been given by numerous authors to the theory of the magnetic resonance phenomenon, and it is considered to be in a satisfactory state at the present time. 

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy is the use of the NMR phenomenon to study physical and chemical properties of matter. As a consequence, NMR spectroscopy finds applications in several areas of science. NMR spectroscopy is routinely used by chemists to study materials. Solid state NMR spectroscopy is used to determine the molecular structure of solids. In our investigation, NMR spectroscopy was used to determine the molecular structure of asphaltene molecules. 

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is at present one of the most widely applied physical techniques in biology, and its potential applications increase day by day, as more sophisticated instrumentation becomes available and deeper theoretical knowledge is obtained. The phenomenon of NMR was discovered simultaneously by Purcell and his associates at Harvard University and by Bloch and co-workers at Stanford University, for which they were jointly awarded the Nobel prize in physics in 1952. In the lipid field there are two main types of NMR spectroscopy that are of interest broad-line experiments, concerned mainly with the spectra obtained from samples in the solid state, or from oriented phases, and narrow-line, or high-resolution, experiments carried out with samples in the liquid, solution or gas phases. Both types of NMR spectroscopy are extremely useful in the study of the lipids. In addition, Fourier transform (FT) NMR has helped increase the sensitivity of the technique and the so-called pulse method of recording spectra has literally widened the prospect of NMR applications in the field of lipid research and industry. The application of NMR to solid fats is still in its infancy (Pines et aL, 1973 Schaefer and Stejskal, 1979 BocieketaL, 1985). 

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