MILLIMETER/SUBMILLIMETER DETECTION OF METHANOL CLUSTERS IN A SUPERSONIC EXPANSION SOURCE

Methanol clusters are a subject of great interest as they give insight into the nature of van der Waals complexes. In the course of our experimental study of the protonated formaldehyde ion, we have encountered unknown spectral lines that are believed to arise from methanol clusters. Both the methanol dimer and methanol-argon clusters have been previously observed experimentally. These studies have been limited to the microwave regime between 7 to 26 GHz. The observed spectra of both molecules are dense due to the splittings that occur because of the low barriers to internal motion. Here we present our findings, analysis of the unidentified lines that are present in our experimental results, and our progress to extend the spectra of methanol dimers and methanol-argon clusters from 50 to 1000 GHz