Mattias Edén

Broadband dipolar recoupling in the nuclear magnetic resonance of rotating solids: A compensated C7 pulse sequence

We introduce an improved variant of the C7 pulse-sequence for efficient recoupling of spin-1/2 pair dipolar interactions in magic-angle spinning solid-state NMR spectroscopy. The tolerance of C7 toward isotropic as well as anisotropic chemical shift offsets and rf inhomogeneity is improved considerably by replacing the original basic element Cφ44=(2π)φ(2π)φ+π with the cyclically permuted element Cφ143=(π/2)φ(2π)φ+π(3π/2)φ. The improved performance of this permutationally offset stabilized variant of C7 is analyzed by average Hamiltonian theory to fifth order, numerical simulations, and demonstrated by experiments on powder samples of doubly 13C-labeled barium oxalate hemihydrate and diammonium fumarate.

Proto-Calcite and Proto-Vaterite in Amorphous Calcium Carbonates

Amorphous order: Amorphous calcium carbonates (ACC) have an intrinsic structure relating to the crystalline polymorphs of calcite and vaterite. The proto-crystalline structures of calcite and vater ...

Pulse sequence symmetries in the nuclear magnetic resonance of spinning solids: Application to heteronuclear decoupling

We develop the average Hamiltonian theory of a class of symmetrical radio-frequency pulse sequences in the NMR of rotating solids. Theorems are presented which allow one to predict the elimination of many average Hamiltonian terms, without detailed calculation. These results are applied to the problem of heteronuclear decoupling in the presence of rapid magic angle spinning. We present sequences which minimize the number of heteronuclear terms at the same time as recoupling the homonuclear interactions of the irradiated spins. The performance of the new sequences is tested on 13C labeled calcium formate. Experimental measurements of double-quantum 1H excitation indicate a relationship between good heteronuclear decoupling of the observed spin species and efficient recoupling of the irradiated spin species. The heteronuclear decoupling performance of the new sequences is significantly better than that obtained with an unmodulated radio-frequency field. The decoupling performance is improved further by brea...

Direct determination of a molecular torsional angle by solid-state NMR

Abstract A solid-state NMR method for the determination of the torsional angle of a 13C-labelled HCCH moiety is demonstrated. The method exploits the evolution of 13C double-quantum coherence under the influence of magnetic fields from the neighbouring proton spins. The experiment operates under magic-angle-spinning conditions, does not require molecular orientational order, is insensitive to shielding tensor orientations, and has high sensitivity and resolution. Experimental demonstrations and numerical simulations are shown. We obtain a torsional angle resolution of ≈ ± 20° in the neighbourhood of the cis geometry and ≈ ± 10° in the neighbourhood of the trans geometry.

Recoupling of heteronuclear dipolar interactions in solid-state NMR using symmetry-based pulse sequences

We apply symmetry theorems to the problem of heteronuclear dipolar recoupling in the presence of magic-angle spinning in solid-state NMR. Examples are shown in which the C-13 NMR signal is acquired while rotor-synchronized pulse sequences with the symmetry R18(1)(7) or R18(2)(5) are applied to the H-1 spins. This allows recoupling of heteronuclear dipolar interactions combined with homonuclear decoupling of the irradiated H-1 spins. The structure of the C-13 NMR spectrum is sensitive to bond lengths and bond angles. A two-dimensional procedure is described for applications to multiply isotopically labelled systems. Article Outline: 1. Introduction 2. Pulse sequence symmetries 3. One-dimensional spectra 3.1. IS systems 3.2. I2S systems 3.3. I3S systems 4. Two-dimensional Spectra 5. Materials and methods 6. Conclusions Acknowledgements References

Determination of a molecular torsional angle in the metarhodopsin-I photointermediate of rhodopsin by double-quantum solid-state NMR

We present a solid-state NMR study of metarhodopsin-I, the pre-discharge intermediate of the photochemical signal transduction cascade of rhodopsin, which is the 41 kDa integral membrane protein that triggers phototransduction in vertebrate rod cells. The H-C10-C11-H torsional angles of the retinylidene chromophore in bovine rhodopsin and metarhodopsin-I were determined simultaneously in the photo-activated membrane-bound state, using double-quantum heteronuclear local field spectroscopy. The torsional angles were estimated to be |φ| = 160 ± 10° for rhodopsin and φ= 180 ± 25° for metarhodopsin-I. The result is consistent with current models of the photo-induced conformational transitions in the chromophore, in which the 11-Z retinal ground state is twisted, while the later photointermediates have a planar all-E conformation.

Second order average Hamiltonian theory of symmetry-based pulse schemes in the nuclear magnetic resonance of rotating solids: application to triple-quantum dipolar recoupling.

The average Hamiltonian theory (AHT) of several classes of symmetry-based radio-frequency pulse sequences is developed to second order, allowing quantitative analyses of a wide range of recoupling and decoupling applications in magic-angle-spinning solid state nuclear magnetic resonance. General closed analytical expressions are presented for a cross term between any two interactions recoupled to second order AHT. We classify them into different categories and show that some properties of the recoupling pulse sequence may be predicted directly from this classification. These results are applied to examine a novel homonuclear recoupling strategy, effecting a second order average dipolar Hamiltonian comprising trilinear triple quantum (3Q) spin operators. We discuss general features and design principles of such 3Q recoupling sequences and demonstrate by numerical simulations and experiments that they provide more efficient excitation of (13)C 3Q coherences compared to previous techniques. We passed up to 15% of the signal through a state of 3Q coherence in rotating powders of uniformly (13)C-labeled alanine and tyrosine. Second order recoupling-based (13)C homonuclear 3Q correlation spectroscopy is introduced and demonstrated on tyrosine.

Computer-intensive simulation of solid-state NMR experiments using SIMPSON.

Conducting large-scale solid-state NMR simulations requires fast computer software potentially in combination with efficient computational resources to complete within a reasonable time frame. Such simulations may involve large spin systems, multiple-parameter fitting of experimental spectra, or multiple-pulse experiment design using parameter scan, non-linear optimization, or optimal control procedures. To efficiently accommodate such simulations, we here present an improved version of the widely distributed open-source SIMPSON NMR simulation software package adapted to contemporary high performance hardware setups. The software is optimized for fast performance on standard stand-alone computers, multi-core processors, and large clusters of identical nodes. We describe the novel features for fast computation including internal matrix manipulations, propagator setups and acquisition strategies. For efficient calculation of powder averages, we implemented interpolation method of Alderman, Solum, and Grant, as well as recently introduced fast Wigner transform interpolation technique. The potential of the optimal control toolbox is greatly enhanced by higher precision gradients in combination with the efficient optimization algorithm known as limited memory Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno. In addition, advanced parallelization can be used in all types of calculations, providing significant time reductions. SIMPSON is thus reflecting current knowledge in the field of numerical simulations of solid-state NMR experiments. The efficiency and novel features are demonstrated on the representative simulations.

Local structures of mesoporous bioactive glasses and their surface alterations in vitro: inferences from solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance

We review the benefits of using 29Si and 1H magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy for probing the local structures of both bulk and surface portions of mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) of the CaO–SiO2−(P2O5) system. These mesoporous materials exhibit an ordered pore arrangement, and are promising candidates for improved bone and tooth implants. We discuss experimental MAS NMR results from three MBGs displaying different Ca, Si and P contents: the 29Si NMR spectra were recorded either directly by employing radio-frequency pulses to 29Si, or by magnetization transfers from neighbouring protons using cross polarization, thereby providing quantitative information about the silicate speciation present in the pore wall and at the MBG surface, respectively. The surface modifications were monitored for the three MBGs during their immersion in a simulated body fluid (SBF) for intervals between 30 min and one week. The results were formulated as a reaction sequence describing the interconversions between the distinct silicate species. We generally observed a depletion of Ca2+ ions at the MBG surface, and a minor condensation of the silicate-surface network over one week of SBF soaking.

Solid-State 31P and 1H NMR Investigations of Amorphous and Crystalline Calcium Phosphates Grown Biomimetically From a Mesoporous Bioactive Glass

By exploiting 1H and 31P magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, we explore the proton and orthophosphate environments in biomimetic amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) and hydroxy-apatite (HA), as grown in vitro at the surface of a 10CaO–85SiO2–5P2O5 mesoporous bioactive glass (MBG) in either a simulated body fluid or buffered water. Transmission electron microscopy confirmed the presence of a calcium phosphate layer comprising nanocrystalline HA. Two-dimensional 1H–31P heteronuclear correlation NMR established predominantly 1H2O↔31PO43– and O1H↔31PO43– contacts in the amorphous and crystalline component, respectively, of the MBG surface-layer; these two pairs exhibit distinctly different 1H→31P cross-polarization dynamics, revealing a twice as large squared effective 1H–31P dipolar coupling constant in ACP compared with HA. These respective observations are mirrored in synthetic (well-crystalline) HA, and the amorphous calcium orthophosphate (CaP) clusters that are present in the pristine MBG pore walls: besides highlighting very similar local 1H and 31P environments in synthetic and biomimetic HA, our findings evidence closely related NMR characteristics, and thereby similar local structures, of the CaP clusters in the pristine MBG relative to biomimetic ACP.