Prolific Polymorph Generator ROY in Its Liquid and Glass: Two Conformational Populations Mirroring the Crystalline-State Distribution.

5-Methyl-2-[(2-nitrophenyl)amino]-3-thiophenecarbonitrile, dubbed ROY for its numerous crystal polymorphs of red, orange, and yellow colors, has been studied in its liquid and glassy state by infrared spectroscopy. Two populations of conformers are observed, whose equilibrium is characterized by ΔH = 2.4 kJ/mol and ΔS = 8.0 J/K/mol. The two populations correspond to the global and local minima of the torsional energy surface and to the conformational preference of the 13 crystal polymorphs. The local minimum features a more coplanar arrangement of the two aromatic rings, greater π conjugation, and lower CN stretch frequency. In the gas phase, the lowest-energy path between the two minima has an energy barrier 3.9 kJ/mol above the global minimum, consistent with the rapid equilibration between the two populations. The relevance of our result for understanding the prolific polymorphism of ROY is discussed.