Experimental and theoretical Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy, density functional theory, antibacterial activity and molecular docking studies on 1-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1H-imidazole

Abstract

Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and Raman (FT-Ra) spectra of 1-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1H-imidazole were recorded and analyzed. The vibrational wavenumbers of the structure were computed by using the density functional theory (DFT)/Becke three Lee–Yang–Parr (B3LYP)/6–311 ++ g(d,p) basis set. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy values were determined to be − 1 eV and − 6.27 eV, respectively. The HOMO–LUMO energy gap value was found to be 5.27 eV. A large HOMO–LUMO gap means low reactivity in chemical reactions, indicating the high stability of the molecule. The HOMO–LUMO energy gap for the existing structure is relatively high, as a result the title molecule is hard. 1H, 13C NMR, and UV–Vis experimental and theoretical spectral analyses were given. Molecular electrostatic potential, Fukui functions, and charge analysis were performed to predict electrophilic and nucleophilic regions or atoms. The nonlinear optical properties of the structure were investigated, and it was found that the structure showed an important nonlinear optical property. Basic thermodynamic properties such as entropy (S), enthalpy changes (ΔH), heat capacity (Cp), Gibbs free energy (G), and zero-point vibration energy were calculated under constant pressure in the gas phase for different temperature values. It was determined that this compound has a significant antibacterial effect against some bacterial strains. Also, to support the antibacterial activity studies of the title molecule, molecular docking studies were carried out with protein structures of some microorganisms used in the antibacterial activity studies. © 2022, Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences.