Georgetown University - Department of Chemistry Department of Chemistry

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Richard D. Bates, Jr.Richard D. Bates, Jr.
Professor Emeritus

Department of Chemistry 
Georgetown University
37th and O Streets NW
Washington, DC 20057-1227

Office: Reiss 240
Phone: 202-687-5970
Fax: 202-687-6209
E-mail:
Education /
Background

B.A. 1966, Cornell University, cum laude
M.A. 1967, Cornell University, cum laude
Ph.D. 1971, Columbia University. NIH Predoctoral Fellow; DuPont Teaching Fellow; Hammett Traveling Fellow. Preceptor in Chemistry, Columbia University,
1967-68. 1Lt, U.S. Army Electronics Command, Research Chemist
1971-73. Visiting Research Scholar, Northwestern University, 1981.

Sony Teaching Scholar

Teaching
General Chemistry I & II, Advanced General Chemistry, Physical Chemistry II 
Research Interests

Experimental chemical physics.
Studies of molecular dynamics by laser and spectroscopic methods. Laser-induced fluorescence studies of vibrational energy transfer processes; the role of sensitizers in laser-stimulated chemical reactions; solvent-solute interactions by magnetic resonance techniques; dynamics of transient complexation.

Laser studies - gas phase.
Infrared laser pulses provide rapid, selective excitation of specific molecular states or species. Rates and mechanisms of reestablishing equilibrium are determined by monitoring time-dependent fluorescence from specific molecular levels. Recent work has examined the selectivity of interspecies vibrational energy flow processes and the theory of long-range interactions. Current goals of the research are: 1) to understand the importance of different energy transfer mechanisms in governing relaxation, heating, and reaction processes; 2) to examine the collision-induced coupling between molecules excited to states above the discrete levels; 3) to improve and test theories of long-range vibrational energy transfer; and 4) to examine on a molecular level the role of absorbing media in the laser cavity in inducing instabilities and chaotic behavior in the laser output.

Magnetic resonance studies - liquid phase.
Intermolecular couplings of nuclear and unpaired electron spins probe the dynamics of molecular interactions in liquids. Transient population shifts are used to examine molecular structure and its sensitivity to interactions with other species in solution. The objectives of this program are to identify the time and distance parameters that characterize short-lived interactions between molecules, to probe on a molecular level the effect of the solvent on interactions such as hydrogen bonding, and to detect differences in accessibility of sites on molecules for forming short-lived complexes.

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