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Pressure effects on the Raman vibrations of an energetic crystal FOX-7 (1, 1-diamino-2, 2-dinitroethene) were examined using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. High accuracy calculations were performed with a periodic plane-wave DFT method using norm-conserving pseudopotentials. Different exchange-correlation functionals were examined for their applicability in describing the structural and vibrational experimental data. It is shown that the PBE functional with an empirical dispersion correction by Grimme, PBE-D method, reproduces best the molecular geometry, unit cell parameters, and vibrational frequencies. Assignments of intramolecular Raman active vibrations are provided. The calculated pressure dependence of Raman shifts for the intramolecular and lattice modes were found to be in good agreement with the experimental data; in particular, the calculations predicted correctly a decrease of frequencies for the NH2 stretching modes with pressure. Also, in accord with experiments, the calculations indicated some instances of modes mixing/coupling with increasing pressure. This work demonstrates that the dispersion-corrected PBE functional can account for the structural and vibrational properties of FOX-7 crystal at ambient and high pressures.

Anion photoelectron spectra of Ga(x)N(y)(-) cluster anions, in which x = 4-12, y = 1 and x = 7-12, y = 2, were measured. Ab initio studies were conducted on Ga(x)N(y)(-) cluster anions in which x = 4-7, y = 1 and Ga(7)N(2)(-), providing their structures and electronic properties. The photoelectron spectra were interpreted in terms of the computational results. This allowed for identification of the isomers present in the beam experiments for specific Ga(x)N(-) cluster anions (x = 4-7). The unexpected presence of Ga(x)N(2)(-) species is also reported.

The electronic and geometrical structures of Al7N- are investigated using photoelectron spectroscopy and ab initio calculations. Photoelectron spectra of Al7N- have been obtained at three photon energies with six resolved spectral features at 193 nm. The spectral features of Al7N- are relatively broad, in particular for the ground state transition, indicating a large geometrical change from the ground state of Al7N- to that of Al7N. The ground state vertical detachment energy is measured to be 2.71 eV, whereas only an upper limit of approximately 1.9 eV can be estimated for the ground state adiabatic detachment energy due to the broad detachment band. Global minimum searches for A7N- and Al7N are performed using several theoretical methods. Vertical electron detachment energies are calculated using three different methods for the lowest energy structure and compared with the experimental data. Calculated results are in excellent agreement with the experimental data. The global minimum structure of Al7N- is found to possess C3v symmetry, which can be viewed as an Al atom capping a face of a N-centered Al6N octahedron. In the ground state of Al7N, however, the capping Al atom is pushed inward with the three adjacent Al-Al distances being stretched outward. Thus, even though Al7N still possesses C3v symmetry, it is better viewed as a N-coordinated by seven Al atoms in a cage-like structure. The chemical bonding in Al7N- is discussed on the basis of molecular orbital and natural bond analysis.

The extensive search for the global minimum structure of Hf3 at the B3LYP/LANL2DZ level of theory revealed that D3h 3A2' (1a1'(2)1a2''(2)1e'(4)2a1'(2)1e''2) and D3h 1A1' (1a1'(2)2a1'(2)1e'(4)1a2''(2)3a1'2) are the lowest triplet and singlet states, respectively, with the triplet state being the lowest one. However, at the CASSCF(10,14)/Stuttgart+2f1g level of theory these two states are degenerate, indicating that at the higher level of theory the singlet state could be in fact the global minimum structure. The triplet D3h 3A2' (1a1'21a2''(2)1e'(4)2a1'(2)1e''2) structure is doubly (sigma- and pi-) aromatic and the singlet D3h 1A1' (1a1'(2)2a1'(2)1e'(4)1a2''(2)3a1'2) structure is the first reported triply (sigma-, pi-, and delta-) aromatic system.

The electronic and geometrical structure of a nitrogen-doped Al6- cluster (Al6N-) is investigated using photoelectron spectroscopy and ab initio calculations. Photoelectron spectra of Al6N- have been obtained at three photon energies with seven resolved spectral features. The electron affinity of Al6N has been determined to be 2.58 +/- 0.04 eV. Global minimum structure searches for A6N- and its corresponding neutral form are performed using several theoretical methods. Vertical electron detachment energies, calculated using three different methods for the lowest energy structure and a low-lying isomer, are compared with the experimental data. The ground-state structure of Al6N- is established from the joint experimental and theoretical study to consist of an Al2 dimer bonded to the top of a quasi-planar tetracoordinated N unit, Al4N-, or it can be viewed as a distorted trigonal prism structure with the N atom bonded in one of the prism faces. For neutral Al6N, three low-lying isomers are found to compete for the global minimum, two of which are built from the tetracoordinated Al4N unit. The chemical bonding in Al6N- is discussed on the basis of molecular orbital and natural bond analyses.