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Nuclear spin singlet states as a contrast mechanism for NMR spectroscopy
Author(s) -
DeVience Stephen J.,
Walsworth Ronald L.,
Rosen Matthew S.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
nmr in biomedicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.278
H-Index - 114
eISSN - 1099-1492
pISSN - 0952-3480
DOI - 10.1002/nbm.2936
Subject(s) - singlet state , nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy , chemistry , nuclear magnetic resonance , molecule , spectroscopy , singlet fission , pulse sequence , triplet state , molecular physics , chemical physics , physics , atomic physics , excited state , quantum mechanics , organic chemistry
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of complex chemical mixtures often contain unresolved or hidden spectral components, especially when strong background signals overlap weaker peaks. In this article we demonstrate a quantum filter utilizing nuclear spin singlet states, which allows undesired NMR spectral background to be removed and target spectral peaks to be uncovered. The quantum filter is implemented by creating a nuclear spin singlet state with spin quantum numbers j = 0, m z = 0 in a target molecule, applying a continuous RF field to both preserve the singlet state and saturate the magnetization of undesired molecules and then mapping the target molecule singlet state back into an NMR observable state so that its spectrum can be read out unambiguously. The preparation of the target singlet state can be carefully controlled with pulse sequence parameters, so that spectral contrast can be achieved between molecules with very similar structures. We name this NMR contrast mechanism ‘Suppression of Undesired Chemicals using Contrast‐Enhancing Singlet States’ (SUCCESS) and we demonstrate it in vitro for three target molecules relevant to neuroscience: aspartate, threonine and glutamine. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.