A comprehensive discussion of HSQC and HMQC pulse sequences

Abstract

Abstract Much of the progress in NMR applications over the last decade has stemmed from the development of proton‐detected, heteronuclear multidimensional spectroscopy. The basic building blocks of the multitude of double and triple resonance experiments available today are the heteronuclear multiple quantum correlation (HMQC) and heteronuclear single quantum correlation (HSQC) experiments. The goal of this article is to provide a comprehensive, pedagogical description of these two pulse sequences, with the aid of product operator formalism. Building from basic principles, constant‐time experiments, sensitivity‐enhanced techniques and the role of pulsed‐field gradients for coherence transfer pathway selection are explained in detail. This article is intended to be used as a primer for students and researchers seeking a firm theoretical understanding of the fundamental tools of modern NMR pulse sequences. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson 20A: 1–23, 2004