Spectra of isotopically mixed benzene dimers: Details on the interaction in the vdW bond

Abstract

Isotopically mixed jets of benzene produced the various possible isotopic benzene dimers in a supersonic jet. Mass coincidence in time-of-flight multiphoton mass spectra separated the spectra due to the various dimers produced into distinguishable spectra even in the presence of overlap. From the many different isotopic spectral shifts a detailed model of interaction between the two halves of the dimer can be established revealing detailed new information on this interaction. In particular a splitting in the 0–0 transition is reported for the first time indicating an exciton interaction in the dimer of isotropic identical benzene molecules in the gas phase.