ESR Studies of Electron Transfer: <i>trans</i>-Stilbene—Stilbene− System

Abstract

The rate of electron transfer between the stilbene anion radical and trans-stilbene has been measured in dimethoxyethane and tetrahydrofuran. The second-order rate constants are approximately 109 liters mole−1·sec−1, and the activation energies fall between 2 and 3 kcal mole−1. In all cases the rates were measured from the ESR linewidths at the fast-exchange limit. Also, it is shown that the required second moment of the unbroadened spectrum can be determined with sufficient accuracy directly from the unresolved experimental spectra.