Conformations of alpha-aminobutyric acid in the gas phase.

A laser-ablation molecular-beam Fourier transform microwave (LA-MB-FTMW) spectrometer has been successfully applied to the structural study of alpha-aminobutyric acid. Three neutral conformers have been identified in the gas phase by comparing their experimental rotational and 14N nuclear quadrupole coupling parameters with those predicted by ab initio calculations at the MP2/6-311++G(d,p) level. The most stable conformer is stabilized by a bifurcated amine-to-carbonyl hydrogen bond (N--HO=C) and a cis-COOH group, and the side-chain adopts a configuration with a torsion angle tau(C(gamma)-C(beta)-C(alpha)-C') of about 180 degrees. The second most stable conformer exhibits the same configuration for the amino acid skeleton but adopts a different orientation for the side chain with tau(C(gamma)-C(beta)-C(alpha)-C') approximately -60 degrees. In the third conformer an intramolecular hydrogen bond is established between the hydroxyl group and the nitrogen atom (NH--O), with a side-chain orientation similar to that of the most stable conformer.