THE STUDY OF SMALL BIOMOLECULES USING CHIRPED-PULSE FOURIER TRANSFORM MICROWAVE (CP-FTMW) SPECTROMETER IN THE GAS PHASE

Work supported by NSF (CHE-0618740).Author Institution: Department of Chemistry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa 15213; Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va 22904The microwave spectra of a large molecule is sensitive to both the structure of the molecule and as well as its motion along different vibrational coordinates. Chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave (CP-FTMW) spectroscopy is an exciting new technique that makes possible the reading of the complete microwave spectrum of a gas phase sample using a single 1 µs pulse. In this report, we will describe the recent introduction of a laser ablation nozzle for the study of small biomolecules using this technique. Potential applications of the technique to other samples also will be described