0000000000048531
AUTHOR
Villy Sundström
Interligand Electron Transfer Determines Triplet Excited State Electron Injection in RuN3−Sensitized TiO2 Films
Electron injection from the transition metal complex Ru(dcbpy)(2)(NCS)(2) (dcbpy = 2,2'-bipyridine-4,4'-dicarboxylate) into a titanium dioxide nanoparticle film occurs along two pathways. The dominating part of the electron injection proceeds from the initially excited singlet state of the sensitizer into the conduction band of the semiconductor on the sub-hundred-femtosecond time scale. The slower part of the injection occurs from the thermalized triplet excited state on the picosecond time scale in a nonexponential fashion, as was shown in a previous study (Benko, G.; et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 489). Here we show that the slower channel of injection is the result of the excited s…
Characterisation of Chlorophyll a and Chlorophyll b Monomers in Various Solvent Environments with Ultrafast Spectroscopy
In photosynthesis the energy from the sun is captured by light harvesting chlorophyll pigments and converted to stable chemical energy, by the photochemical reaction center. Photosynthetic energy transfer in the antenna systems of green plants has previously been studied by ultrafast time resolved spectroscopy. The characteristics of the chlorophyll pigments itself is important to study in order to understand the dynamics on a femtosecond timescale. One way to study the energy transfer is to use transient absorption spectroscopy and follow the increase or decrease in the transient absorption signal with time (1). Another way to study the energy transfer is to monitor the change in dichroism…
Dynamics of ground and excited state chlorophylla molecules in pyridine solution probed by femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy
Abstract Femtosecond pump–probe spectroscopy was used to investigate the ground and excited state dynamics of chlorophyll a (Chl a ) in pyridine following excitation by a 100 fs optical pulse. The transient absorption spectrum and kinetics reveal spectral evolution on two ultrafast time scales: ∼100 fs and ∼3 ps. We attribute these dynamics to ground-state transient hole-burning and solvation dynamics. Transient absorption anisotropy at early times (∼500 fs) was measured for Chl a in pyridine and shows a pronounced wavelength dependence, where anisotropy varies between 0 and 0.5. Strong contribution from excited state absorption is the origin of the variation.
Electron Transfer from the Singlet and Triplet Excited States of Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2into Nanocrystalline TiO2Thin Films
Time-resolved absorption spectroscopy was used to study the femtosecond and picosecond time scale electron injection from the excited singlet and triplet states of Ru(dcbpY)(2)(NCS)(2) (RuN3) into titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanocrystalline particle film in acetonitrile. The fastest resolved time constant of similar to30 fs was shown to reflect a sum of two parallel ultrafast processes, nonergodic electron transfer (ET) from the initially excited singlet state of RuN3 to the conduction band of TiO2 and intersystem crossing (ISC). The branching ratio of 1.5 between the two competing processes gives rate constants of 1/50 fs(-1) for ET and 1/75 fs(-1) for ISC. Following the ultrafast processes, a…
Photoinduced ultrafast dynamics of Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2-sensitized nanocrystalline TiO2 films:The influence of sample preparation and experimental conditions
In most of the previous ultrafast electron injection studies of Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2-sensitized nanocrystalline TiO2 films, experimental conditions and sample preparation have been different from study to study and no studies of how the differences affect the observed dynamics have been reported. In the present paper, we have investigated the influence of such modifications. Pump photon density, environment of the sensitized film (solvent and air), and parameters of the film preparation (crystallinity and quality of the film) were varied in a systematic way and the obtained dynamics were compared to that of a well-defined reference sample: Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2−TiO2 in acetonitrile. In some cases, …
Ultrafast Dynamics of Dansylated POPAM Dendrimers and Energy Transfer in their Dye Complexes
We have studied internal dynamics of dansylated poly(propyleneamine) dendrimers of different generations in solution and excitation energy transfer from dansyl chromophores to xanthene dyes that form van der Waals complexes with the dendrimers
Photoinduced ultrafast dye-to-semiconductor electron injection from nonthermalized and thermalized donor states.
Electron injection from the transition metal complex Ru(dcbpy)(2)(NCS)(2) (dcbpy = 4,4'-dicarboxy-2,2'-bipyridine) into a titanium dioxide nanocrystalline film occurs on the femto- and picosecond time scales. Here we show that the dominating part of the electron transfer proceeds extremely rapidly from the initially populated, vibronically nonthermalized, singlet excited state, prior to electronic and nuclear relaxation of the molecule. The results are especially relevant to the understanding and design of molecular-based photovoltaic devices and artificial photosynthetic assemblies.
Internal dynamics and energy transfer in dansylated POPAM dendrimers and their eosin complexes.
Internal dynamics of dansylated poly(propyleneamine) dendrimers (POPAM, G1-G4) in solution and excitation energy transfer from dansyls to eosin in POPAM-eosin complexes have been studied by time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Combining the results from fluorescence anisotropy and the MD simulation studies suggests three time domains for the internal dynamics of the G3 and G4 generations, about 60 ps for motions of the outer-sphere dansyls, 500-1000 ps for restricted motions of back-folded dansyls, and 1500-2600 ps for the overall rotation. For the smaller generations, the contribution from the restricted motions was not entirely evident. Eosin bi…
A study of electron transfer in Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2 sensitized nanocrystalline TiO2 and SnO2 films induced by red-wing excitation.
Excited state dynamics and electron transfer from the Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)2 (RuN3) sensitizer to semiconductor nanoparticles were studied using time-resolved femtosecond absorption spectroscopy. We found that excitation of the red wing of the absorption spectrum of the sensitizer populates the (3)MLCT state directly, both in solution and attached on semiconductor nanoparticle films. Electron injection is slowed down and becomes gradually less efficient as excitation moves towards red from the absorption maximum at 535 nm. At 675 nm the injection is non-exponential and characterized by 5, 30 and 180 ps time constants. The non-exponential electron injection observed is assigned to injection from a…
Beating Darwin-Bragg losses in lab-based ultrafast x-ray experiments
The use of low temperature thermal detectors for avoiding Darwin-Bragg losses in lab-based ultrafast experiments has begun. An outline of the background of this new development is offered, showing the relevant history and initiative taken by this work. (C) 2017 Author(s). Funding Agencies|Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation; ERC [226136]; Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES; Academy of Finland [260880]; NIST Innovations in Measurement Science program; DOE Office of Basic Energy Sciences
Photoinduced interfacial electron injection in RuN3–TiO2 thin films: Resolving picosecond timescale injection from the triplet state of the protonated and deprotonated dyes
Using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy we have studied light-induced electron injection from the sensitizer RuN3 and its partly deprotonated tetrabutylamonium salt to nano-structured TiO2 film. Previous studies have suggested significant differences in electron injection dynamics for these dyes and some results have indicated that aggregation of the sensitizer may lead to slow injection. By measuring transient absorption spectra and kinetics of RuN3 and RuN3-TBA in solution and attached to TiO2 film we show that the electron injection dynamics are very similar for the two forms of the dye and that aggregation has only moderate effects on the electron transfer dynamics. (c) 2008…