Calculated properties of the active site of oxidized rubredoxins: III. Zero field splittings, magnetic moments and electron spin resonance spectra

For a molecular model of the Fe-S active site complex in oxidized rubredoxin, we have calculated the spin-orbit coupling between the ground sextet state and excited quartet and doublet states which gives rise to the observed zero field splitting of the sextet ground state into three spin-mixed Kramers doublets. Additionally, we have used the six spin-mixed sextet state components to calculate effective magnetic moments, magnetic field energies and nine g values corresponding to transitions between the three pairs of Kramers doublets in applied magnetic fields along three perpendicular axes. We have calculated these properties for eight conformational variations of the ligands around the Fe at the active site. The results of these calculations clearly show the origin of the observed g=4.3 signal previously described only in terms of the phenomenological spin-Hamiltonian formalism. For the eight conformations considered, five have this characteristic signal. Zero field splitting comparable to the observed values could be obtained for all symmetries studied. In addition, the calculated values of magnetic moment in all symmetries correspond to that of high spin ferric ion and do not vary appreciably with temperature above 77° K, in agreement with experimental results. From comparison of all our calculated results with experiment, it appears that the active site in oxidized rubredoxins could have small conformational variations in different rubredoxins and under the various experimental conditions used.