Molecular motions in the solid rotator phase of 2-adamantone: A thermally stimulated currents study

A Thermally Stimulated Discharge Currents (t.s.d.c.) study of 2-adamantanone has been performed in the temperature range from -160 degrees C to +100 degrees C in order to analyse the phase transitions and the molecular motions present in this solid. A relaxation was observed at -130 degrees C which was attributed to the transition between an ordered brittle phase and a biphasic system composed by this ordered phase and an orientationaly disordered phase. An higher temperature relaxation was also observed which probably corresponds to the onset of the molecular self-diffusion in the solid. It was suggested that the t.s.d.c. technique is potentially a powerful technique to study molecular motions in solid rotator phases.