Spin-lattice relaxation study of the methyl proton dynamics in solid 9,10-dimethyltriptycene (DMT)

Proton spin-lattice relaxation studies are performed for powder samples of 9,10-dimethyltriptycene (DMT) and its isotopomer DMT-d12 in which all the non-methyl protons in the molecule are replaced by deuterons. The relaxation data are interpreted in terms of the conventional relaxation theory based on the random jump model in which the Pauli correlations between the relevant spin and torsional states are discarded. The Arrhenius activation energies, obtained from the relaxation data, 25.3 and 24.8 kJ mol−1 for DMT and DMT-d12, respectively, are very high as for the methyl groups. The validity of the jump model in the present case is considered from the perspective of Haupt theory in which the Pauli principle is explicitly invoked. To this purpose, the dynamic quantities entering the Haupt model are reinterpreted in the spirit of the damped quantum rotation (DQR) approach introduced recently for the purpose of NMR lineshape studies of hindered molecular rotators. Theoretical modelling of the relevant methyl group dynamics, based on the DQR theory, was performed. From these calculations it is inferred that direct assessments of the torsional barrier heights, based on the Arrhenius activation energies extracted from relaxation data, should be treated with caution.