K- and L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) determination of differential orbital covalency (DOC) of transition metal sites

Michael L. Baker, Michael William Mara, James J. Yan, Keith O. Hodgson*, Britt Hedman, Edward I. Solomon

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

141 Scopus citations

Abstract

Continual advancements in the development of synchrotron radiation sources have resulted in X-ray based spectroscopic techniques capable of probing the electronic and structural properties of numerous systems. This review gives an overview of the application of metal K-edge and L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), as well as Kα resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS), to the study of electronic structure in transition metal sites with emphasis on experimentally quantifying 3d orbital covalency. The specific sensitivities of K-edge XAS, L-edge XAS, and RIXS are discussed emphasizing the complementary nature of the methods. L-edge XAS and RIXS are sensitive to mixing between 3d orbitals and ligand valence orbitals, and to the differential orbital covalency (DOC), that is, the difference in the covalencies for different symmetry sets of the d orbitals. Both L-edge XAS and RIXS are highly sensitive to and enable separation of σ and π donor bonding and π back bonding contributions to bonding. Applying ligand field multiplet simulations, including charge transfer via valence bond configuration interactions, DOC can be obtained for direct comparison with density functional theory calculations and to understand chemical trends. The application of RIXS as a probe of frontier molecular orbitals in a heme enzyme demonstrates the potential of this method for the study of metal sites in highly covalent coordination sites in bioinorganic chemistry.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)182-208
Number of pages27
JournalCoordination Chemistry Reviews
Volume345
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 15 2017

Keywords

  • Bioinorganic chemistry
  • Covalency
  • Electronic structure
  • Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering
  • Transition metal ion active sites
  • X-ray absorption spectroscopy
  • X-ray emission spectroscopy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Materials Chemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry

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