ZrO3 and HfO3 molecules were prepared via reactions of metal monoxides with dioxygen in solid argon and were characterized using matrix isolation infrared absorption spectroscopy as well as theoretical calculations. Unlike the titanium monoxide molecule, which reacted spontaneously with dioxygen to form TiO3, the ZrO and HfO molecules reacted with dioxygen to give the ZrO3 and HfO3 molecules only under visible light irradiation. Density functional calculations predicted that both the ZrO3 and HfO3 molecules possess a closed-shell singlet ground state with a non-planar C8 geometry, in which the side-on coordinated O2 falls into the peroxide category.
In this review, we summarize our recent results on matrix isolation infrared spectroscopic studies and theoretical investigations of noble gas-transition metal oxide complexes. The results show that some transition metal oxide species trapped in solid noble gas matrices are chemically coordinated by one or multiple noble gas atoms forming noble gas complexes and, hence, cannot be regarded as isolated species. Noble gas coordination alters the vibrational frequencies as well as the geometric and electronic structures of transition metal oxide species trapped in solid noble gas matrixes. The interactions between noble gas atoms and transition metal oxides involve ion-induced dipole interactions as well as chemical bonding interactions. Periodic trends in the bonding in these noble gas-transition metal complexes are discussed.
