Underwater optical wireless communications (UOWC) have gained a considerable interest during the last years as an alternative means for broadband inexpensive submarine communications. UOWC present numerous similarities compared to free space optical (FSO) communications or laser satellite links mainly due to the fact that they employ optical wavelengths to transfer secure information between dedicated point‐to‐point links. By using suitable wavelengths, high data rates can be attained. Some recent works showed that broadband links can be achieved over moderate ranges. Transmissions of several Mbps have been realized in laboratory experiments by employing a simulated aquatic medium with scattering characteristics similar to oceanic waters. It was also demonstrated that UOWC networks are feasible to operate at high data rates for medium distances up to a hundred meters. However, it is not currently available as an industrial product and mainly test‐bed measurements in water test tanks have been reported so far. Therefore, extensive research is expected in the near future, which is necessary in order to further reveal the “hidden” abilities of optical spectrum to transfer broadband signals at higher distances. The present work summarizes the recent advances in channel modeling and system analysis and design in the area of UOWC.

It is well known that water inside hydrophobic nano-channels diffuses faster than bulk water. Recent theoretical studies have shown that this enhancement depends on the size of the hydrophobic nanochannels. However, experimental evidence of this dependence is lacking. Here, by combining two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance diffusion–relaxation ($D$ –$T_{2eff}$ ) spectroscopy in the stray field of a superconducting magnet and molecular dynamics simulations, we analyze the size dependence of water dynamics inside Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs) of different diameters ($1.1$ –$6.0$ nm), in the temperature range of $265$ –$305$ K. Depending on the CNT diameter, the nanotube water is shown to resolve in two or more tubular components acquiring different self-diffusion coefficients. Most notably, a favorable CNT diameter range ($3.0$ –$4.5$ nm) is experimentally verified for the first time, in which water molecule dynamics at the center of the CNTs exhibits distinctly non-Arrhenius behavior, characterized by ultrafast diffusion and extraordinary fragility, a result of significant importance in the efforts to understand water behavior in hydrophobic nanochannels.

A combined experimental and computational approach was used to distinguish between different polymorphs of the pharmaceutical drug aspirin. This method involves the use of ab initio random structure searching (AIRSS), a density functional theory (DFT)‐based crystal structure prediction method for the high‐accuracy prediction of polymorphic structures, with DFT calculations of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) parameters and solid‐state NMR experiments at natural abundance. AIRSS was used to predict the crystal structures of form‐I and form‐II of aspirin. The root‐mean‐square deviation between experimental and calculated ¹H chemical shifts was used to identify form‐I as the polymorph present in the experimental sample, the selection being successful despite the large similarities between the molecular environments in the crystals of the two polymorphs.

Molecular motion in nanosized channels can be highly complicated. For example, water molecules in ultranarrow hydrophobic nanopores move rapidly and coherently in a single file, whereas by increasing the pore size they organize into coaxial tubes, displaying stratified diffusion. Interestingly, an analogous complex motion is predicted in viscous charged fluids, such as room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) confined in nanoporous carbon or silica; however, experimental evidence is still pending. Here, by combining ¹H NMR diffusion experiments in different relaxation windows with molecular dynamics simulations, we show that the imidazolium-based RTIL [BMIM]⁺[TCM]⁻, entrapped in the MCM-41 silica nanopores, exhibits an intricate dynamic molecular ordering; adsorbed RTIL molecules form a fluctuating charged layer near the pore walls, while in the bulk pore space they diffuse discretely in coaxial tubular shells, with molecular mean square displacement following a nearly ∼τ^0.5 time dependence, characteristic of single file diffusion.

Solid-state dynamic nuclear polarization enhanced magic angle spinning (DNP-MAS) NMR measurements coupled with density functional theory (DFT) calculations enable the full resonance assignment of a complex pharmaceutical drug molecule without the need for isotopic enrichment. DNP dramatically enhances the NMR signals, thereby making possible previously intractable two-dimensional correlation NMR spectra at natural abundance. Using inputs from DFT calculations, herein we describe a significant improvement to the structure elucidation process for complex organic molecules. Further, we demonstrate that a series of two-dimensional correlation experiments, including ¹⁵N-¹³C TEDOR, ¹³C-¹³C INADEQUATE/SARCOSY, ¹⁹F-¹³C HETCOR, and ¹H-¹³C HETCOR, can be obtained at natural isotopic abundance within reasonable experiment times, thus enabling a complete resonance assignment of sitagliptin, a pharmaceutical used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.