Research Facilities
The McMahon group uses several different instruments and conditions to synthesize, study, and characterize carbenes of interest.
The carts, one of which is shown above, contain the spectroscopic window on which a diazo compound is co-deposited with argon or nitrogen. The cart allows for molecules to be studied under conditions that mimic those in interstellar space, namely low temperatures, low pressures, and isolated molecules. The cart is mobile and can be wheeled to each of the spectrometers used to study the molecules of interest.
The cold head (at the top of the apparatus) contains circulating liquid helium, which allows for the spectroscopic window (at the bottom of the picture) to be cooled to 10 K. The diazo compound and argon or nitrogen are co-deposited on the spectroscopic window such that the molecules of interest are isolated from one another. Intermolecular reactions are therefore avoided, allowing for the photochemistry of individual molecules to be studied.
The cart can be wheeled to the infrared specrometer, which is used to characterize the molecules as they undergo photochemical changes.
The cart can also be wheeled to the ultraviolet-visible spectrometer, which is used to study the vibronic characteristics of the molecules.
Finally, the cart can be wheeled to the ESR (electron spin resonance, also known as electron paramagnetic resonance, or EPR). This allows for the characterization of triplet carbenes or species with unpaired electrons.
Many of the molecules that are synthesized in the McMahon lab require dry solvent conditions. The group has five solvent stills, used to dry four different solvents that are commonly used in these syntheses.
The McMahon group has three different laboratory rooms, one of which contains the instrumentation used to study the molecules of interest. The other two laboratories are used for wet-chemistry and contain hoods, benches, and solvent and chemical cabinets. Each student has his or her own hood and bench space.
Finally, each wet-lab has an adjacent office with a desk for each student.
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Last updated January 24, 2008.
