Structural and electrostatic effects at the surfaces of size- and charge-selected aqueous nanodrops.

ABSTRACT: The effects of ion charge, polarity and size on the surface morphology of size-selected aqueous nanodrops containing a single ion and up to 550 water molecules are investigated with infrared photodissociation (IRPD) spectroscopy and theory. IRPD spectra of M(H₂O) _n where M = La³⁺, Ca²⁺, Na⁺, Li⁺, I^-, SO₄^2- and supporting molecular dynamics simulations indicate that strong interactions between multiply charged ions and water molecules can disrupt optimal hydrogen bonding (H-bonding) at the nanodrop surface. The IRPD spectra also reveal that "free" OH stretching frequencies of surface-bound water molecules are highly sensitive to the ion's identity and the OH bond's local H-bond environm

SUBMITTER: Cooper RJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5618692 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature