Chemistry

Department Spotlight

High-tech Spectrometer Brings Molecular Structure into Focus
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectrometer

Whitworth chemistry students are able to study the basic building blocks of substances ranging from table sugar to DNA using a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectrometer acquired by the Chemistry Department in April of 2000.

The NMR spectrometer is essentially a large, superconducting magnet into which a sample is placed. Radio waves are transmitted through the sample. The nuclei of the atoms in the sample respond differently depending upon their magnetic properties, and this provides a glimpse of the sample's molecular structure. A variation of the technique, known as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), is routinely used by doctors to diagnose illness without invasive surgery.

Associate Professor of Chemistry Karen Stevens and Associate Professor of Education David Cherry were principal investigators for the $90,000 National Science Foundation grant that funded the purchase of the spectrometer. An additional $20,000 was provided by the Dreyfus Special Grant Program in the Chemical Sciences, and $70,000 was contributed by private donors and by the college.