Is a Proton's Excited State Also Non-Adiabatic?

[greisen]

Hi,

I am reading about protons and their transfer mechanisms and often the words nonadiabatic and excited state are used in a way which confuses me.

If I have a proton in a higher vibrating state (E1) I would called that an excited state for the proton - is this also a non-adiabatic state for the proton?

Any help or advise appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Best

 

[chemisttree]

I would think that for larger masses like the proton, non-adiabatic processes would be very important (relative to electronic excited states). In NMR, these non-adiabatic processes occur between the excited magnetic state of the proton and nearby (physically nearby) lattice. The relaxation of the excited state magnetizaton occurs through interaction with the solvent and other analyte molecules (the 'lattice') and through nearby (both physically and electronically) spin systems. These energy transfer mechanisms would be defined as non-adiabatic since they are intermolecular transfers of energy.

A good definition of 'non-adiabatic' and 'adiabatic' for excited state systems can be found here:

http://www.worldscibooks.com/phy_etextbook/4783/4783_chap1.pdf