Protein induced singlet–triplet quasidegeneracy in the active site of [NiFe]-hydrogenase

Molecular hydrogen oxidation and reduction on [NiFe]-hydrogenase is an inspiring example of using abundant first row transition metals to catalyze biologically and industrially important chemical reactions. We demonstrate that by rotating terminal thiolate ligands in the active site of [NiFe]-hydrogenase, either the singlet or triplet electronic state can be made a ground state. The two states become degenerate when the ligand orientations are similar to those observed in [NiFe]-hydrogenase, where this orientation is enforced by the protein backbone. The unusual distorted coordination geometry of Ni can explain the inability of the structural models of [NiFe]-hydrogenase to bind molecular hydrogen.