Inelastic Neutron Scattering Spectra of Free Base and Zinc Porphines: A Comparison with DFT-Based Vibrational Analysis

Computational investigation on the geometry and electronic structures and absorption spectra of metal-porphyrin-oligo- phenyleneethynylenes-[60] fullerene triads

In this work, we focus our attention on the influence of 2nd-row transition metals on the structural geometries, electronic structures, and absorption characteristics of porphyrin linked with the C₆₀ fullerene with oligo-p-phenyleneethynylenes (MP-C₆₀-oligo-PPEs) compounds. The DFT/B3PW91-D3 and CAM-B3LYP-D3/6-31G (d) calculations revealed that various metals embedded within the porphyrin moiety give different bridge conformations and different HOMO-LUMO energy levels. We calculate the UV-Vis spectra and absorption parameters using the time-dependent ZINDO/S approach. Our findings indicate that all the compounds have enhanced absorptions in the visible light range, and their molecular orbital energies adopt the condition of sensitizers. However, all of the complexes except down spin states exhibit considerably charge spatial separation. The results suggest that the ZnP-C₆₀-oligo-PPEs triad can meet the necessary conditions of the sensitizer of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) in comparison with other counterparts and could be an optimum triad compound for potential application in photovoltaic devices.

DFT/TD-semiempirical study on the structural and electronic properties and absorption spectra of supramolecular fullerene-porphyrine-metalloporphyrine triads based dye-sensitized solar cells

In the present work density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent semiempirical ZNIDO/S (TD-ZNIDO/S) methods have been used to investigate the ground state geometries, electronic structures and excited state properties of triad systems. The influences of the type of metal in the porphyrin ring, change in bridge position and porphyrine-ZnP duplicate on the energies of frontier molecular orbital and UV-Vis spectra has been studied. Geometry optimization, the energy levels and electron density of the Highest Occupied Molecular Orbital (HOMO) and the Lowest Unoccupied Molecular Orbital (LUMO), chemical hardness (η), electrophilicity index (ω), electron accepting power (ω⁺) were calculated using ZINDO/S method to predict which molecule is the most efficient with a great capability to be used as a triad molecule in solar industry. Moreover the light harvesting efficiency (LHE) was calculated by means of the oscillator strengths which are obtained by TD-ZINDO/S calculation. Theoretical studies of the electronic spectra by ZINDO/S method were helpful in interpreting the observed electronic transitions. This aspect was systematically explored in a series of C₆₀-Porphyrine-Metalloporphyrine (C₆₀-P-Mp) triad system with M being Fe, Co, Ni, Ti, and Zn. Generally, transition metal coordination compounds are used as effective sensitizers, due to their intense charge-transfer absorption over the whole visible range and highly efficient metal-to-ligand charge transfer. We aim to optimize the performance of the title solar cells by altering the frontier orbital energy gaps. The results reveal that cell efficiency can be enhanced by metal functionalization of the free base porphyrin. Ti-porphyrin was found to be the most efficient dye sensitizer for dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) based on C₆₀-P-Mptriad system due to C₆₀-Por-TiP complex has lower chemical hardness, gap energy and chemical potential as well as higher electron accepting power among other complexes. In addition, the performance of solar cells favors better with doubly and increasing the π conjugated of the bridge.

Nonempirical anharmonic vibrational perturbation theory applied to biomolecules: free-base porphin

Anharmonic vibrational frequencies and intensities (infrared and Raman) of an isolated free-base porphin molecule are predicted from the quantum mechanical (QM) geometry, the "semi-diagonal" quartic force field, and dipole moment and polarizability surfaces. The second-order vibrational perturbation theory plus the numerical diagonalization of the Hamiltonian matrix containing off-diagonal Fermi and Darling-Dennison resonance couplings (VPT2+WK) was used. The QM calculations were carried out with the Becke-Lee-Yang-Parr composite exchange-correlation functional (B3LYP) and with the 6-31+G(d,p) basis set. The harmonic force field for the equilibrium configuration was transformed into nonredundant local symmetry internal coordinates, and normal coordinates were defined. The semi-diagonal quartic rectilinear normal coordinate potential energy surface (PES), as well as the cubic surfaces of dipole moment (p) and polarizability (α) components, needed for the VPT2+WK calculation, were constructed by a five-point finite differentiation of Hessians (for PES) and of the values and first derivatives of p and α. They were obtained at the point of equilibrium and for 432 displaced configurations. This theoretical approach provides very good agreement between the predicted and experimental frequencies and intensities. However, the favorable result can be partly attributed to error cancellation within the B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) QM model, as observed in earlier studies. Reassignments of some observed bands are proposed.

Theoretical study of phosphorescence in dye doped light emitting diodes

Phosphorescence of platinum(II) octaethyl porphyrin (PtOEP), which has been used in organic light emitting diodes to overcome the efficiency limit imposed by the formation of triplet excitons, is studied by time-dependent (TD) density functional theory (DFT). The spin-orbit coupling (SOC) effects and the phosphorescence radiative lifetime (tau(p) (r)), calculated by the TD DFT method with the quadratic response technique, are analyzed for a series of porphyrins in order to elucidate the internal heavy atom effect on tau(p) (r). While the significance of the d(pi) orbital admixture into the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital e(g)(pi(*)), proposed by Gouterman et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 56, 4073 (1972)], is supported by our SOC calculations, we find that the charge-transfer (CT) mechanism is more important; the CT state of the (3)A(2g) symmetry provides effective SOC mixing with the ground state, and a large (3)A(2g)-(3)E(u) transition dipole moment gives the main contribution to the radiative phosphorescence rate constant. The IR and Raman spectra in the ground state and first excited triplet state (T(1)) are studied for proper assignment of vibronic patterns. An orbital angular momentum of the T(1) state is not quenched completely by the Jahn-Teller effect. A large zero-field splitting is predicted for PtP and PtOEP which results from a competition between the SOC and Jahn-Teller effects. A strong vibronic activity is found for the e(g) mode at 230 cm(-1) in PtP phosphorescence which is shifted to 260 cm(-1) in PtOEP. This out-of-plane vibration of the Pt atom produces considerable change of the SOC mixing. The role of charge-transfer state of d(pi)pi(*) type is stressed for the explanation of the electroluminescent properties of the dye doped light emitting diode.

Vibalizer: A free, web-based tool for rapid, quantitative comparison and analysis of calculated vibrational modes

This report describes the development and applications of a software package called Vibalizer, the first and only method that provides free, fast, interactive, and quantitative comparison and analysis of calculated vibrational modes. Using simple forms and menus in a web-based interface, Vibalizer permits the comparison of vibrational modes from different, but similar molecules and also performs rapid calculation and comparison of isotopically substituted molecules' normal modes. Comparing and matching complex vibrational modes can be completed in seconds with Vibalizer, whereas matching vibrational modes manually can take hours and gives only qualitative comparisons subject to human error and differing individual judgments. In addition to these core features, Vibalizer also provides several other useful features, including the ability to automatically determine first-approximation mode descriptions, to help users analyze the results of vibrational frequency calculations. Because the software can be dimensioned to handle almost arbitrarily large systems, Vibalizer may be of particular use when analyzing the vibrational modes of complex systems such as proteins and extended materials systems. Additionally, the ease of use of the Vibalizer interface and the straightforward interpretation of results may find favor with educators who incorporate molecular modeling into their classrooms. The Vibalizer interface is available for free use at http://www.compchem.org, and it is also available as a locally-installable package that will run on a Linux-based web server.

Structural and vibrational characterization of tetracyanoethylene-hexamethylbenzene as a function of pressure

The neutron powder diffraction and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) spectra of the electron donor-acceptor complex, tetracyanoethylene-hexamethylbenzene have been studied as a function of pressure to 0.414 GPa. Using the PW91 and PBE density functional theories, the unit cell vectors were calculated as a function of pressure and are compared to those experimentally obtained from the diffraction data. The calculated lattice vectors display large errors at low pressures but were found to be in close agreement with the experimental vectors at 0.414 GPa. Comparison of the experimental INS spectra of the TCNE-HMB enabled assignment of specific vibrational modes while providing a direct measurement of the effect of pressure on the complex. The PW91 vibrational frequency calculations reproduced both the vibrational intensities and frequencies with relative accuracy.