The design and fabrication of a Smalley-type cluster source in combination with a reflectron based time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer are reported. The generation of clusters is based on supersonic jet expansion of the sampling plume. Sample cells for both liquid and solid targets developed for this purpose are described. Two pulsed Nd-YAG lasers are used in tandem, one (532 nm) for target vapourization and the other (355 nm) for cluster ionization. Methanol clusters of nuclearity up to 14 (mass 500 amu) were produced from liquid methanol as the test sample. The clusters were detected with a mass resolution of ∼ 2500 in the R-TOF geometry. Carbon clusters up to a nuclearity of 28 were obtained using a polyimide target. The utility of the instrument is demonstrated by carrying out experiments to generate mixed clusters from alcohol mixtures.

Detailed X-ray crystallographic investigation of the reactive α- and the unreactive γ-polymorphs ofo-ethoxy cinnamic acid has been carried out along with that of the photodimer, α-truxillic acid. The molecule is quite planar in the α-form, but in the γ-form, the side groups deviate significantly from the plane of the benzene ring. The carboxylic groups form normal cyclic hydrogen bonds in the α-form and near-symmetric hydrogen bonds in the γ-form. The infrared spectrum of the α-form shows the characteristic features of the cyclic dimer, but that of the γ-form is entirely different, marked by the absence of the O-H stretching band in the 3000 cm^-1 region. Charge density analysis throws some light on the structure and reactivity of the molecule in the two forms. The near-symmetric hydrogen bond in the γ-form is ionic and appears to restrict conjugation by way of distorting the molecule. This unusual feature keeps the cinnamoyl double bonds away from each other, rendering it photochemically unreactive. In the α-form, however, the double bonds have a closer approach. The cyclobutyl ring of the photodimer consists of weak single bonds, with the new pair being slightly longer.

Alkylthiolates of palladium forming a homologous series (butyl to octadecyl) have been prepared and characterized using X-ray diffraction and STM. The thiolates adopt an unusual bilayered lamellar structure, whose thickness is governed by the length of the alkyl chain. These mesophases melt in the temperature range, 60° to 100°C, with the melting point increasing linearly with the thiol chain length. There is evidence to suggest that the alkyl chains are orientationally disordered especially prior to melting.

An experimental charge density study has been carried out on perylene based on X-ray diffraction measurements at 130 K. The electron density and its associated properties have been evaluated at the bond and the ring critical points for the naphthalene residues as well as for the central ring. The variation of the Laplacian along the axis, above and below the ring plane, is found to be symmetric for the central ring while for the naphthalene rings, the Laplacian values are enhanced under the bow-shaped region. A plot of the Laplacian versus density evaluated at various points along the axis above the ring plane, shows a steep variation in the case of the central ring implying that theπ-density is smeared out compared to that over the naphthalene rings. Similar data extracted from a quinoid ring and a regular phenyl ring (both based on earlier reports from this laboratory) exhibit increasingly shallower trends and indicate, by contrast, that the central ring of perylene is much less aromatic.

An experimental charge density study has been carried out on proton-transfer complexes exhibiting nonlinear optical (NLO) properties-melaminium tartrate monohydrate and L-asparaginium picrate employing high-resolution X-ray diffraction at 100 K. Both the complexes crystallize in non-centric space group P2₁ and the structures exhibit interesting patterns of N-H…O and O-H…O hydrogen bonding. Experimental determination of the dipole moment (𝜇) for the asymmetric unit reveals that for both the crystals, there is a large cooperative enhancement in the crystalline 𝜇 arising essentially due to hydrogen bond mediated charge transfer between the melaminium ion and the L-tartrate in one case, between the Lasparaginium ion and the picrate in the other complex. We have additionally performed theoretical calculations at the density functional theory (DFT) level to understand the origin of enhancement of the dipole moments in the two systems.