Structure of saligenin: microwave, UV and IR spectroscopy studies in a supersonic jet combined with quantum chemistry calculations

In this study, we have determined the structure of a medicinally important molecule saligenin (2-hydroxybenzyl alcohol) using UV, IR and microwave absorption spectroscopy in a supersonic jet combined with ab initio calculations. The structure of the only observed conformer of saligenin corresponds to the global minimum on the conformational surface. The observed structure is stabilized by an intramolecular strong O–H⋯O hydrogen bonding as well as a very weak O–H⋯π interaction. The hydrogen bond is formed through phenolic OH as the hydrogen bond donor and benzylic OH as the hydrogen bond acceptor while the O–H⋯π interaction is through benzylic O–H as the hydrogen bond donor and phenyl group as the hydrogen bond acceptor. It has been observed that the benzylic OH stretching frequency in saligenin is more red-shifted compared to that in benzyl alcohol as the strong O–H⋯O interaction present in saligenin acts on the benzylic O–H group. In fact, there is a subtle interplay among the strong O–H⋯O hydrogen bond, weak O–H⋯π interaction, and steric effects arising from the ortho substitution of the OH group in benzyl alcohol. This fine-tuning of multiple interactions very often governs the specific structures of biomolecules and materials.