Abstract:
The structure an other physical properties of inorganic compounds in the solid state may be deduced from data obtained by numerous physical methods. Infrared spectroscopy and, in the case of transition metal compounds, magnetic susceptibility measurement are two of these methods which have recently been supplemented by further techniques: solid reflectance spectroscopy and the Mössbauer effect. The usefulness of these four methods in deducing the structure are:
(1) The frequency at which vibrational absorption by the atoms of molecule takes place is a function of the molecular symmetry, the nature of the surrounding ligands and the type of bending existing in a molecule. An infrared spectrum thus furnishes a great deal of information about the compound.