Freezing of Molecular Motions Probed by Cryogenic Magic Angle Spinning NMR

Cryogenic magic angle spinning makes it possible to obtain the NMR spectra of solids at temperatures low enough to freeze out most molecular motions. We have applied cryogenic magic angle spinning NMR to a crystalline small-molecule solid (ibuprofen sodium salt), which displays a variety of molecular dynamics. Magic angle ¹³C NMR spectra are shown for a wide range of temperatures, including in the cryogenic regime down to 20 K. The hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions of the molecular structure display different behavior in the cryogenic regime, with the hydrophilic region remaining well-structured, while the hydrophobic region exhibits a broad frozen conformational distribution.