Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in Liquid Crystal Solvents

Since the discovery by Saupe and Englert that a nematic phase is a satisfactory solvent for high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies, the variety of liquid crystal phases which have been found useful in NMR experiments has greatly increased. The resonance studies have increased our understanding of the structure of the solvent mesophases, and of their interactions with solute molecules. A new method to determine accurate molecular structures by the analysis of solute NMR spectra has been developed. Application to bicyclobutane will be discussed. As a side benefit, one finds other information of interest to magnetic resonance spectroscopists including the absolute values of indirect spin-spin couplings and their assignment to nuclear pairs.