Solid-state proton NMR of paramagnetic metal complexes: DANTE spin echoes for selective excitation in inhomogeneously broadened lines

The paramagnetic complex bis(oxazolinylphenyl)amine–Fe(III)Cl2 is investigated by means of solid-state proton NMR at 18.8 T (800 MHz) using magic-angle spinning at 65 kHz. Spin echoes that are excited and refocused by combs of rotor-synchronized pulses in the manner of ‘Delays Alternating with Nutation for Tailored Excitation’ (DANTE) allow one to characterize different chemical environments that severely overlap in conventional MAS spectra. Such sequences combine two apparently contradictory features: an overall bandwidth exceeding several MHz, and very selective irradiation of a few kHz within inhomogeneously broadened sidebands. The experimental hyperfine interactions correlate well with DFT calculations.