Solid-State NMR Spectrometer (500-600 MHz)

• Subject Area: Condensed Matter Physics
• Term: Funded in 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 564167816

We are applying for a solid-state NMR spectrometer (500-600 MHz) to investigate the structure and dynamics of condensed matter, in particular disordered systems. The main field of application is the characterization of complex structure-dynamics relationships in condensed matter with spatially heterogeneous properties on the nanometer scale, not least in nanostructured systems. The spectrum of materials ranges from liquids at biomimetic or technological interfaces via various classes of soft matter to structurally heterogeneous solid electrolytes, including lithium ion conductors. In order to understand the properties of such complex systems, it is necessary to study their structure and dynamics in detail over wide ranges of length and time scales. Modern methods of solid-state NMR spectroscopy have proven to be excellently suited for this purpose. For example, it is not only possible to selectively analyze the properties of individual structural units, but also to quantify correlations between these structural units using the spectral resolution in various double resonance NMR experiments under rapid sample rotation. The proposed solid-state NMR spectrometer will be used to exploit the fact that such analyses provide very valuable insights, especially in studies on systems with heterogeneous structure and dynamics, where the evaluations are otherwise severely hampered by the overlapping contributions of various components. A particular focus is on the question of how the long-range molecular transport in such systems, which is relevant for many applications, emerges from complex relationships between local structure and dynamics in the presence of concentration and mobility gradients as well as dynamic couplings between the components. In recent years, new appointments and third-party funded projects at the Department of Physics at TU Darmstadt have resulted in a new and increased demand for NMR investigations of structurally heterogeneous liquid, soft and solid systems, which cannot be met with the equipment available at the university. The proposed solid-state NMR spectrometer is ideally suited to close this gap. It will be set up in an existing NMR laboratory of the Vogel group at the Department of Physics and integrated into the instrumentation of the NMR Center Darmstadt. The Department of Physics owns a number of self-built, highly specific NMR instruments, in particular relaxometers and diffusometers, whereas double resonance experiments with fast sample rotation are currently not available for spectrally resolved analyses of structure and dynamics. On the university level, the proposed device with its soft matter application optimally complements the existing capabilities at the interface between liquid-state NMR and solid-state NMR.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Festkörper-NMR-Spektrometer (500-600 MHz)
• Instrumentation Group: 1741 Festkörper-NMR-Spektrometer
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Darmstadt
• Leader: Professor Dr. Michael Vogel