Accurate measurements of longitudinal relaxation time constants (T1) in solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (SSNMR) experiments are important for the study of molecular-level structure and dynamics. Such measurements are often made under magic-angle spinning conditions; however, there are numerous instances where they must be made on stationary samples, which often give rise to broad powder patterns arising from large anisotropic NMR interactions. In this work, we explore the use of wideband uniform-rate smooth-truncation pulses for the measurement of T1 constants. Two experiments are introduced: (i) BRAIN-CPT1, a modification of the BRAIN-CP (BRoadband Adiabatic-INversion-Cross Polarization) sequence, for broadband CP-based T1 measurements and (ii) WCPMG-IR, a modification of the WURST-CPMG sequence, for direct-excitation (DE) inversion-recovery experiments. A series of T1 constants are measured for spin-1/2 and quadrupolar nuclei with broad powder patterns, such as 119Sn (I = 1/2), 35Cl (I = 3/2), 2H (I = 1), and 195Pt (I = 1/2). High signal-to-noise spectra with uniform patterns can be obtained due to signal enhancements from T2eff-weighted echo trains, and in favorable cases, BRAIN-CPT1 allows for the rapid measurement of T1 in comparison to DE experiments. Protocols for spectral acquisition, processing, and analysis of relaxation data are discussed. In most cases, relaxation behavior can be modeled with either monoexponential or biexponential functions based upon measurements of integrated powder pattern intensity; however, it is also demonstrated that one must interpret such T1 values with caution, as demonstrated by measurements of T1 anisotropy in 119Sn, 2H, and 195Pt NMR spectra.

The organic components in metal−organic frameworks (MOFs) are unique: they are embedded in a crystalline lattice, yet, as they are separated from each other by tunable free space, a large variety of dynamic behavior can emerge. These rotational dynamics of the organic linkers are especially important due to their influence over properties such as gas adsorption and kinetics of guest release. To fully exploit linker rotation, such as in the form of molecular machines, it is necessary to engineer correlated linker dynamics to achieve their cooperative functional motion. Here, we show that for MIL-53, a topology with closely spaced rotors, the phenylene functionalization allows researchers to tune the rotors' steric environment, shifting linker rotation from completely static to rapid motions at frequencies above 100 MHz. For steric interactions that start to inhibit independent rotor motion, we identify for the first time the emergence of coupled rotation modes in linker dynamics. These findings pave the way for function-specific engineering of gear-like cooperative motion in MOFs.

Many NMR-active nuclei give rise to solid-state NMR spectra that span extremely large frequency regions due to the effects of large anisotropic NMR interactions; such spectra, which can range from 250 kHz to several MHz in breadth, have been termed ultrawideline (UW) NMR spectra. UWNMR spectra are often too broad to be uniformly excited by conventional pulse sequences that implement rectangular radiofrequency (RF) pulses. Therefore, they are typically acquired with specialized pulse sequences and frequencyswept (FS) pulses; however, such experiments are conducted predominantly upon stationary samples (i.e., static NMR with no magic-angle spinning, MAS). Herein, we demonstrate how to implement Carr−Purcell Meiboom−Gill (CPMG) type pulse sequences that utilize rectangular pulses to acquire high-quality wideline and UWNMR spectra under MAS conditions, which are useful for providing uniformly excited patterns with substantial signal enhancements in comparison to conventional MAS NMR spectra and identifying peaks and/or patterns corresponding to magnetically nonequivalent sites. We discuss the pulse timings, delays, and the duration of windowed acquisition periods that are necessary for using CPMG-type pulse sequences for T 2 -dependent enhancement under MAS conditions while allowing for chemical shift resolution and maintaining a conventional spinning-sideband (SSB) manifold, as well as protocols for processing these spectra. Careful consideration is given to pulse lengths and RF amplitudes used in these pulse sequences. Using several spin-1 / 2 (i.e., 119 Sn, 207 Pb, 195 Pt) nuclei and one integer-spin quadrupolar nucleus (i.e., 2 H), we show how sensitivity-enhancing protocols, including CPMG and cross-polarization (CP), can be used to deliver high-quality MAS NMR spectra, which feature high signal-to-noise (S/N) ratios and uniformly excited SSB manifolds. The methods outlined herein are facile to implement and offer the potential to open up MAS NMR experiments to a wide variety of elements from across the periodic table.