Nikolaus P. Ernsting

Cooling dynamics of an optically excited molecular probe in solution from femtosecond broadband transient absorption spectroscopy

The cooling of p-nitroaniline (PNA), dimethylamino-p-nitroaniline (DPNA) and trans-stilbene (t-stilbene) in solution is studied experimentally and theoretically. Using the pump–supercontinuum probe (PSCP) technique we observed the complete spectral evolution of hot absorption induced by femtosecond optical pumping. In t-stilbene the hot S1 state results from Sn→S1 internal conversion with 50 fs characteristic time. The time constant of intramolecular thermalization or intramolecular vibrational redistribution (IVR) in S1 is estimated as τIVR≪100 fs. In PNA and DPNA the hot ground state is prepared by S1→S0 relaxation with characteristic time 0.3–1.0 ps. The initial molecular temperature is 1300 K for PNA and 860 K for t-stilbene. The subsequent cooling dynamics (vibrational cooling) is deduced from the transient spectra by assuming: (i) a Gaussian shape for the hot absorption band, (ii) a linear dependence of its peak frequency νm and width square Γ2 on molecular temperature T. Within this framework we de...

Femtosecond relaxation of photoexcited para-nitroaniline: solvation, charge transfer, internal conversion and cooling

Abstract The ultrafast relaxation of p -nitroaniline (PNA) in water and acetonitrile is studied experimentally and theoretically. Transient absorption spectra are measured by the pump–supercontinuum probe technique (PSCP) after 50 fs excitation at 400 nm. The relaxation includes several stages with distinct time scales: solvation, intramolecular charge transfer (CT), internal conversion and cooling. The spectral evolution before 100 fs reflects mainly solvation with dynamic Stokes shift of 3500 cm −1 in acetonitrile and 4000 cm −1 in water. CT and internal conversion are governed by twisting of the –NO 2 group and proceed in water with 120 and 250 fs, respectively. A hot ground state upon internal conversion is characterized by an initial temperature of 1400 K. The subsequent solute–solvent energy transfer is characterized by exponential behavior between 1 and 3 ps and by a nonexponential decay at longer delays, the solute cooling time lies in the range 0.85–1.3 ps.

Femtosecond solvation dynamics determining the band shape of stimulated emission from a polar styryl dye

Spectra of transient absorption and stimulated emission are recorded for the styryl dye DASPI, after excitation at 470 nm, with experimental resolution of 100 fs. The evolution of the S1→S0 transition energy distribution is obtained for the solvents methanol and acetonitrile at several temperatures. It is described by the dependence of the mean (first moment), width, and asymmetry (second and third central moments) of the distribution on time. The observed time‐dependence of the mean transition energy is simulated by appropriate models for the solvation dynamics. In both methanol and acetonitrile an ultrafast component is observed. Width and asymmetry change most rapidly and characteristically during this initial part of solvation. In the evolution of the higher moments, different relaxation contributions apparently are better distinguished than in the evolution of the first moment. For methanol at 50 °C, an oscillatory evolution is observed mainly in the higher moments which may indicate underdamped coherent solvent motion.

Femtosecond pump/supercontinuum-probe spectroscopy: Optimized setup and signal analysis for single-shot spectral referencing

A setup for pump/supercontinuum-probe spectroscopy is described which (i) is optimized to cancel fluctuations of the probe light by single-shot referencing, and (ii) extends the probe range into the near-uv (1000-270 nm). Reflective optics allow 50 μm spot size in the sample and upon entry into two separate spectrographs. The correlation γ(same) between sample and reference readings of probe light level at every pixel exceeds 0.99, compared to γ(consec)<0.92 reported for consecutive referencing. Statistical analysis provides the confidence interval of the induced optical density, ΔOD. For demonstration we first examine a dye (Hoechst 33258) bound in the minor groove of double-stranded DNA. A weak 1.1 ps spectral oscillation in the fluorescence region, assigned to DNA breathing, is shown to be significant. A second example concerns the weak vibrational structure around t=0 which reflects stimulated Raman processes. With 1% fluctuations of probe power, baseline noise for a transient absorption spectrum becomes 25 μOD rms in 1 s at 1 kHz, allowing to record resonance Raman spectra of flavine adenine dinucleotide in the S(0) and S(1) state.

Excited Stilbene: Intramolecular Vibrational Redistribution and Solvation Studied by Femtosecond Stimulated Raman Spectroscopy

Excited-state relaxation of cis- and trans-stilbene is traced with femtosecond stimulated Raman spectroscopy, exploiting S(n) <-- S(1) resonance conditions. For both isomers, decay in Raman intensity, shift of spectral positions, and broadening of the bands indicate intramolecular vibrational redistribution (IVR). In n-hexane this process effectively takes 0.5-0.7 ps. Analysis of the intensity decay allows us to further distinguish two phases for trans-stilbene: fast IVR within a subset of modes (approximately 0.3 ps) followed by slower equilibration over the full vibrational manifold (approximately 0.9 ps). In acetonitrile IVR completes with 0.15 ps; this acceleration may originate from symmetry breakage induced by the polar solvent. Another process, dynamic solvation by acetonitrile, is seen as spectral narrowing and characteristic band shifts of the C=C stretch and phenyl bending modes with 0.69 ps. Wavepacket motion is observed in both isomers as oscillation of low-frequency bands with their pertinent mode frequency (90 or 195 cm(-1) in trans-stilbene; 250 cm(-1) in cis-stilbene). Anharmonic coupling shows up as a modulation of high-frequency peak positions by phenyl/ethylene torsion modes of 57 and 90 cm(-1). Decay and shift of the 90 cm(-1) inverse Raman band within the first 0.3 ps suggests a gradual involvement of phenyl/ethylene torsion in relaxation. In cis- and trans-stilbene, low-frequency spectral changes are found within 0.15 ps, indicating an additional ultrafast process.

Complete Solvation Response of Coumarin 153 in Ionic Liquids

The dynamic Stokes shift of coumarin 153, measured with a combination of broad-band fluorescence upconversion (80 fs resolution) and time-correlated single photon counting (to 20 ns), is used to determine the complete solvation response of 21 imidazolium, pyrrolidinium, and assorted other ionic liquids. The response functions so obtained show a clearly bimodal character consisting of a subpicosecond component, which accounts for 10-40% of the response, and a much slower component relaxing over a broad range of times. The times associated with the fast component correlate with ion mass, confirming its origins in inertial solvent motions. Consistent with many previous studies, the slower component is correlated to solvent viscosity, indicating that its origins lie in diffusive, structural reorganization of the solvent. Comparisons of observed response functions to the predictions of a simple dielectric continuum model show that, as in dipolar solvents, solvation and dielectric relaxation involve closely related molecular dynamics. However, in contrast to dipolar solvents, dielectric continuum predictions systematically underestimate solvation times by factors of at least 2-4.

Ultrafast strokes shift and excited-state transient absorption of coumarin 153 in solution

Abstract Transient absorption and gain spectra of coumarin 153 in polar solvents are studied by the pump/supercontinuum probe (PSCP) technique with 40 fs time resolution. Vibrational frequencies in the ground and excited state of the chromophore are obtained from the early transient spectra. At later time, the gain band experiences a considerable red shift with two isosbestic points which appear successively, while a pronounced excited-state absorption band at 428 nm changes only negligibly. These observations are compared to the results from semi-empirical calculations for higher excited states. They are not fully consistent with relaxation due to pure solvation and may indicate an intramolecular process.

FEMTOSECOND HOLE-BURNING SPECTROSCOPY OF THE DYE DCM IN SOLUTION : THE TRANSITION FROM THE LOCALLY EXCITED TO A CHARGE-TRANSFER STATE

Abstract Transient spectra of the styryl dyM (4-dicyanomethylene-2-methyl-6- p -dimethylaminostyryl-4H-pyran) in methanol were studied by the pump-supercontinuum probe technique with 40 fs time resolution. A theory of measurements with a supercontinuum probe is presented. Gain and absorption spectra were measured from 400 to 800 nm with 1.5 nm resolution. Before 70 fs, prominent spectral structure is observed which is mainly due to resonant Raman processes. At longer times the spectrum undergoes a red shift and change of shape (time constant 140 fs) with a well-defined isosbestic point. After 300 fs solvation becomes apparent. The early transient spectrum is assigned to the locally excited state of DCM.

Femtosecond stimulated Raman spectroscopy of flavin after optical excitation.

In blue-light photoreceptors using flavin (BLUF), the signaling state is formed already within several 100 ps after illumination, with only small changes of the absorption spectrum. The accompanying structural evolution can, in principle, be monitored by femtosecond stimulated Raman spectroscopy (FSRS). The method is used here to characterize the excited-state properties of riboflavin and flavin adenine dinucleotide in polar solvents. Raman modes are observed in the range 90-1800 cm(-1) for the electronic ground state S(0) and upon excitation to the S(1) state, and modes >1000 cm(-1) of both states are assigned with the help of quantum-chemical calculations. Line shapes are shown to depend sensitively on resonance conditions. They are affected by wavepacket motion in any of the participating electronic states, resulting in complex amplitude modulation of the stimulated Raman spectra. Wavepackets in S(1) can be marked, and thus isolated, by stimulated-emission pumping with the picosecond Raman pulses. Excited-state absorption spectra are obtained from a quantitative comparison of broadband transient fluorescence and absorption. In this way, the resonance conditions for FSRS are determined. Early differences of the emission spectrum depend on excess vibrational energy, and solvation is seen as dynamic Stokes shift of the emission band. The nπ* state is evidenced only through changes of emission oscillator strength during solvation. S(1) quenching by adenine is seen with all methods in terms of dynamics, not by spectral intermediates.

Measurements of the complete solvation response of coumarin 153 in ionic liquids and the accuracy of simple dielectric continuum predictions

The complete solvation response of coumarin 153 (C153) has been determined over the range 10(-13)-10(-8) s in a variety of ionic liquids by combining femtosecond broad-band fluorescence upconversion and picosecond time-correlated single photon counting measurements. These data are used together with recently reported dielectric data in eight ionic liquids to test the accuracy of a simple continuum model for predicting solvation dynamics. In most cases the features of the solvation response functions predicted by the dielectric continuum model are similar to the measured dynamics of C153. The predicted dynamics are, however, systematically faster than those observed, on average by a factor of 3-5. Computer simulations of a model solute/ionic liquid system also exhibit the same relationship between dielectric predictions and observed dynamics. The simulations point to spatial dispersion of the polarization response as an important contributor to the over-prediction of solvation rates in ionic liquids.