Absorption-based spectroscopic systems

Absorption, atmospheric gases, 217-218,219f Absorption-based spectroscopic systems, 219-229... 

A different approach to dendritic sensors involves modification of a sensor core unit with dendritic substituents to confer beneficial solubility properties. An example of a sensor core unit is the porphyrin macrocycle, a heterocycle that has been employed extensively in prototypical photochemical sensor systems. Vinogradov and co-workers have exploited the versatile photoactive porphyrin sensor unit as a fluorescence-based pH indicator for use in biological assays [73], by attaching acid terminated polyamide-ether dendrons as substituents (Figure 8.12). The two imino nitrogen atoms present in the free-base porphyrin are susceptible to stepwise protonation to afford initially a cation and then a dication, respectively. Upon protonation, both the emission and absorption fluorescence spectroscopic characteristics of the porphyrin core are subject to dramatic hypochromic shifts. This spectroscopic phenomenon formed the basis for an accurate pH indicator with potential applications in proton gradient determination studies in biological systems. 

From the above discussion, we can see that the purpose of this paper is to present a microscopic model that can analyze the absorption spectra, describe internal conversion, photoinduced ET, and energy transfer in the ps and sub-ps range, and construct the fs time-resolved profiles or spectra, as well as other fs time-resolved experiments. We shall show that in the sub-ps range, the system is best described by the Hamiltonian with various electronic interactions, because when the timescale is ultrashort, all the rate constants lose their meaning. Needless to say, the microscopic approach presented in this paper can be used for other ultrafast phenomena of complicated systems. In particular, we will show how one can prepare a vibronic model based on the adiabatic approximation and show how the spectroscopic properties are mapped onto the resulting model Hamiltonian. We will also show how the resulting model Hamiltonian can be used, with time-resolved spectroscopic data, to obtain internal... 

There are two major experimental techniques that can be used to analyze hydrogen bonding in noncrystalline polymer systems. The first is based on thermodynamic measurements which can be related to molecular properties by using statistical mechanics. The second, and much more powerful, way to elucidate the presence and nature of hydrogen bonds in amorphous polymers is by using spectroscopy (Coleman et al., 1991). From the present repertoire of spectroscopic techniques which includes IR, Raman, electronic absorption, fluorescence, and magnetic resonance spectroscopy, the IR is by far the most sensitive to the presence of hydrogen bonds (Coleman et al., 1991). 

Even a small protein consists of many hundreds of atoms. The primary aim of a structure determination is to place each of these atoms in space by determining the coordinates of each atom relative to a fixed coordinate system. The only techniques that can provide detailed information of this type are based on diffraction methods, and X-ray diffraction is the primary method. We must consider the meaning of the structures derived from these studies. Now X-ray diffraction can only be used to determine structures in crystals. One is, however, really concerned with the structure of proteins in solution, and it is therefore necessary to examine the difference between structure in the solid state and the solution state. We consider differences in general between these two states, and then differences in specific cases. To perform structural studies in solution, spectroscopic methods must be used. These methods are quite different from diffraction methods, being concerned with specific absorption or emission... 

Laser systems have been applied to spectroscopic studies of expls (Ref 40). A novel expl vapor detector, based on photoacoustic measurements, has been used to characterize absorption coefficients of expl reaction products (Ref 63). Acoustic spectra from underwater TNT explns have also been measured and analyzed with respect to refracted pulse behavior (Ref 15)... 

When deciding to study the dynamics of electronic excitation energy transfer in molecular systems by conventional spectroscopic techniques (in contrast to those based on non-linear properties such as photon echo spectroscopy) one has the choice between time-resolved fluorescence and transient absorption. This choice is not inconsequential because the two techniques do not necessarily monitor the same populations. Fluorescence is a very sensitive technique, in the sense that single photons can be detected. In contrast to transient absorption, it monitors solely excited state populations this is the reason for our choice. But, when dealing with DNA components whose quantum yield is as low as 10-4, [3,30] such experiments are far from trivial. 

The next two chapters are devoted to ultrafast radiationless transitions. In Chapter 5, the generalized linear response theory is used to treat the non-equilibrium dynamics of molecular systems. This method, based on the density matrix method, can also be used to calculate the transient spectroscopic signals that are often monitored experimentally. As an application of the method, the authors present the study of the interfadal photo-induced electron transfer in dye-sensitized solar cell as observed by transient absorption spectroscopy. Chapter 6 uses the density matrix method to discuss important processes that occur in the bacterial photosynthetic reaction center, which has congested electronic structure within 200-1500cm 1 and weak interactions between these electronic states. Therefore, this biological system is an ideal system to examine theoretical models (memory effect, coherence effect, vibrational relaxation, etc.) and techniques (generalized linear response theory, Forster-Dexter theory, Marcus theory, internal conversion theory, etc.) for treating ultrafast radiationless transition phenomena. 

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