Optical Nuclear Polarization of Deuterium Spins: Mechanisms and Applications in Solid State NMR

A gain in detection sensitivity of more than three orders of magnitude has been achieved in high resolution solid state 2H NMR of monocrystalline systems by applying optical nuclear polarization (ONP) via excited triplet states. The method is demonstrated for crystals of fluorene doped with optically active guest molecules which have localized triplet states and for the 1: 1 mixed crystal of anthracene/tetracyanobenzene with excitonic states. The factors determining the efficiency of ONP are discussed and compared to the case of proton spin systems.