Time-resolved photoelectron spectra as probe of excited state dynamics: A full quantum study of the Na2F cluster

Combined Surface-Hopping, Dyson Orbital, and B-Spline Approach for the Computation of Time-Resolved Photoelectron Spectroscopy Signals: The Internal Conversion in Pyrazine

A computational protocol for simulating time-resolved photoelectron signals of medium-sized molecules is presented. The procedure is based on a trajectory surface-hopping description of the excited-state dynamics and a combined Dyson orbital and multicenter B-spline approach for the computation of cross sections and asymmetry parameters. The accuracy of the procedure has been illustrated for the case of ultrafast internal conversion of gas-phase pyrazine excited to the ¹B_2u(ππ*) state. The simulated spectra and the asymmetry map are compared to the experimental data, and a very good agreement was obtained without applying any energy-dependent rescaling or broadening. An interesting side result of this work is the finding that the signature of the ¹A_u(nπ*) state is indistinguishable from that of the ¹B_3u(nπ*) state in the time-resolved photoelectron spectrum. By locating four symmetrically equivalent minima on the lowest-excited (S₁) adiabatic potential energy surface of pyrazine, we revealed the strong vibronic coupling of the ¹A_u(nπ*) and ¹B_3u(nπ*) states near the S₁ ← S₀ band origin.

High Order Split Operators for the Time-Dependent Wavepacket method of Triatomic Reactive Scattering in Hyperspherical Coordinates

Since the introduction of a series of methods for solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation (TDSE) in the 80s of the last centry, such as the Fourier transform, the split operator (SO), the Chebyshev polynomial propagator, and complex absorbing potential, investigation of the molecular dynamics within quantum mechanics principle have become popular. In this paper, the application of the time-dependent wave packet (TDWP) method using high-order SO propagators in hyperspherical coordinates for solving triatomic reactive scattering was investigated. The fast sine transform was applied to calculate the derivatives of the wave function of the radial degree of freedom. These high-order SO propagators are examined in different forms, i.e., TVT (Kinetic–Potential–Kinetic) and VTV (Potential–Kinetic–Potential) forms with three typical triatomic reactions, H + H 2, O + O 2 and F + HD. A little difference has been observed among the performances of high-order SO propagators in the TVT and VTV representations in the hyperspherical coordinate. For obtaining total reaction probabilities with 1% error, some of the S class high-order SO propagators, which have symmetric forms, are more efficient than second order SO for reactions involving long lived intermediate states. High order SO propagators are very efficient for obtaining total reaction probabilities.

Ab initio nonadiabatic dynamics study of ultrafast radiationless decay over conical intersections illustrated on the Na3F cluster

We present a theoretical approach for the ultrafast nonadiabatic dynamics based on the ab initio molecular dynamics carried out "on the fly" in the framework of the configuration interaction method combined with Tully's surface hopping algorithm for nonadiabatic transitions. This approach combined with our Wigner distribution approach allows us to perform accurate simulations of femtosecond pump-probe spectra in the systems where radiationless transitions among electronic states take place. In this paper we illustrate this by theoretical simulation of ultrafast processes and nonradiative relaxation in the Na(3)F cluster, involving three excited states and the ground electronic state. Furthermore, we show that our accurate simulation of the photoionization pump-probe spectrum is in full agreement with the experimental signal. Based on the nonadiabatic dynamics at high level of accuracy and taking into account all degrees of freedom, the nonradiative lifetime for the 1 (1)B(1) excited state of Na(3)F has been determined to be approximately 900 fs.

Ultrafast excited state dynamics of the Na3F cluster: Quantum wave packet and classical trajectory calculations compared to experimental results

Short-time, excited-state dynamics of the lowest isomer of the Na(3)F cluster is studied theoretically in order to interpret the features of recent time-resolved pump-probe ionization experiments [J. M. L'Hermite, V. Blanchet, A. Le Padellec, B. Lamory, and P. Labastie, Eur. Phys. J. D 28, 361 (2004)]. In the present paper, we propose an identification of the vibrational motion responsible for the oscillations in the ion signal, on the basis of quantum mechanical wave packet propagations and classical trajectory calculations. The good agreement between experiment and theory allows for a clear interpretation of the detected dynamics.

Different approaches for the calculation of electronic excited states of nonstoichiometric alkali halide clusters: The example of Na3F

The electronic structure and excited states of the Na(3)F cluster are investigated using different approximate, but numerically efficient, computational schemes, such as a 2e hybrid quantum/classical pseudopotential model with full-configuration interaction or time-dependent density-functional theory. Various quantities such as geometries and transition energies are compared with results previously obtained by multireference configuration interaction calculations, taken as reference data. The potential energy surfaces of the lowest excited states are investigated and the finite-temperature absorption spectra are calculated. The good agreement with recent beam experiments [J.-M. L'Hermite, V. Blanchet, A. Le Padellec, B. Lamory, and P. Labastie, Eur. Phys. J. D 28, 361 (2004)] leads to the conclusion that the absorption spectrum observed experimentally corresponds to the lowest energy isomer which has a C(2v) planar rhombic geometry.