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Tran T, Ferté A, Vacher M. Simulating Attochemistry: Which Dynamics Method to Use? J Phys Chem Lett 2024; 15:3646-3652. [PMID: 38530933 PMCID: PMC11000647 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.4c00106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2024] [Revised: 03/11/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
Attochemistry aims to exploit the properties of coherent electronic wavepackets excited via attosecond pulses to control the formation of photoproducts. Such molecular processes can, in principle, be simulated with various nonadiabatic dynamics methods, yet the impact of the approximations underlying the methods is rarely assessed. The performances of widely used mixed quantum-classical approaches, Tully surface hopping, and classical Ehrenfest methods are evaluated against the high-accuracy DD-vMCG quantum dynamics. This comparison is conducted for the valence ionization of fluorobenzene. Analyzing the nuclear motion induced in the branching space of the nearby conical intersection, the results show that the mixed quantum-classical methods reproduce quantitatively the average motion of a quantum wavepacket when initiated on a single electronic state. However, they fail to properly capture the nuclear motion induced by an electronic wavepacket along the derivative coupling, the latter originating from the quantum electronic coherence property, key to attochemistry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thierry Tran
- Nantes Université, CNRS, CEISAM
UMR 6230, F-44000 Nantes, France
| | - Anthony Ferté
- Nantes Université, CNRS, CEISAM
UMR 6230, F-44000 Nantes, France
| | - Morgane Vacher
- Nantes Université, CNRS, CEISAM
UMR 6230, F-44000 Nantes, France
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2
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Bäuml L, Rott F, Schnappinger T, de Vivie-Riedle R. Following the Nonadiabatic Ultrafast Dynamics of Uracil via Simulated X-ray Absorption Spectra. J Phys Chem A 2023; 127:9787-9796. [PMID: 37955656 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.3c06509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
The nucleobase uracil exhibits high photostability due to ultrafast relaxation processes mediated by conical intersections (CoIns), where the interplay between nuclear and electron dynamics becomes crucial. In our previous study, we observed seemingly long-lived traces of electronic coherence for the relaxation process through the S2/S1 CoIn by applying our ansatz for coupled nuclear and electron dynamics in molecules (NEMol). In this work, we theoretically investigate how time-dependent transient X-ray absorption spectroscopy can be used to observe this ultrafast dynamics. Therefore, we calculated X-ray absorption spectra (XAS) for the oxygen K-edge, using a multireference protocol in combination with NEMol dynamics. Thus, we have access to both the transient XAS based on the nuclear wavepacket dynamics and the modulation of the signals caused by the electronic coherence induced by the excitation process and the presence of a CoIn seam. In both cases, we were able to qualitatively predict its influence on the resulting XAS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Bäuml
- Department of Chemistry, LMU Munich, Munich 81377, Germany
| | - Florian Rott
- Department of Chemistry, LMU Munich, Munich 81377, Germany
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Zhang J, Peng J, Zhu Y, Hu D, Lan Z. Influence of Mode-Specific Excitation on the Nonadiabatic Dynamics of Methyl Nitrate (CH 3ONO 2). J Phys Chem Lett 2023:6542-6549. [PMID: 37450883 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c00664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
The impact of mode-specific vibrational excitations on initial-preparation conditions was studied by examining the excited-state population decay rates in the nonadiabatic dynamics of methyl nitrate (CH3ONO2). In particular, exciting a few specific modes by adding a single quantum of energy clearly decelerated the nonadiabatic dynamics population decay rates. The underlying reason for this slower population decay was explained by analyzing the profiles of the excited-state potential energy surfaces in the Franck-Condon regions and the topology of the S1/S0 conical intersection. This study not only provides physical insights into the key mechanisms controlling nonadiabatic dynamics but also shows the possibility of controlling nonadiabatic dynamics via mode-specific vibrational excitations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juanjuan Zhang
- SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Environmental Theoretical Chemistry, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Jiawei Peng
- SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Environmental Theoretical Chemistry, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
- School of Chemistry, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Yifei Zhu
- SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Environmental Theoretical Chemistry, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Deping Hu
- Center for Advanced Materials Research, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China
| | - Zhenggang Lan
- SCNU Environmental Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Pollution and Environmental Safety & MOE Key Laboratory of Environmental Theoretical Chemistry, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
- School of Environment, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China
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4
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Dey D, Kuleff AI, Worth GA. Quantum Interference Paves the Way for Long-Lived Electronic Coherences. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2022; 129:173203. [PMID: 36332247 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.129.173203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The creation and dynamical fate of a coherent superposition of electronic states generated in a polyatomic molecule by broadband ionization with extreme ultraviolet pulses is studied using the multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree method together with an ionization continuum model Hamiltonian. The electronic coherence between the hole states usually lasts until the nuclear dynamics leads to decoherence. A key goal of attosecond science is to control the electronic motion and design laser control schemes to retain this coherence for longer timescales. Here, we investigate this possibility using time-delayed pulses and show how this opens up the prospect of coherent control of charge migration phenomenon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diptesh Dey
- Department of Chemistry, University College London, 20 Gordon Street, London WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom
| | - Alexander I Kuleff
- Theoretische Chemie, PCI, Universität Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 229, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Graham A Worth
- Department of Chemistry, University College London, 20 Gordon Street, London WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom
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5
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Ibele LM, Curchod BFE. Dynamics near a conical intersection-A diabolical compromise for the approximations of ab initio multiple spawning. J Chem Phys 2021; 155:174119. [PMID: 34742188 DOI: 10.1063/5.0071376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Full multiple spawning (FMS) offers an exciting framework for the development of strategies to simulate the excited-state dynamics of molecular systems. FMS proposes to depict the dynamics of nuclear wavepackets by using a growing set of traveling multidimensional Gaussian functions called trajectory basis functions (TBFs). Perhaps the most recognized method emanating from FMS is the so-called ab initio multiple spawning (AIMS). In AIMS, the couplings between TBFs-in principle exact in FMS-are approximated to allow for the on-the-fly evaluation of required electronic-structure quantities. In addition, AIMS proposes to neglect the so-called second-order nonadiabatic couplings and the diagonal Born-Oppenheimer corrections. While AIMS has been applied successfully to simulate the nonadiabatic dynamics of numerous complex molecules, the direct influence of these missing or approximated terms on the nonadiabatic dynamics when approaching and crossing a conical intersection remains unknown to date. It is also unclear how AIMS could incorporate geometric-phase effects in the vicinity of a conical intersection. In this work, we assess the performance of AIMS in describing the nonadiabatic dynamics through a conical intersection for three two-dimensional, two-state systems that mimic the excited-state dynamics of bis(methylene)adamantyl, butatriene cation, and pyrazine. The population traces and nuclear density dynamics are compared with numerically exact quantum dynamics and trajectory surface hopping results. We find that AIMS offers a qualitatively correct description of the dynamics through a conical intersection for the three model systems. However, any attempt at improving the AIMS results by accounting for the originally neglected second-order nonadiabatic contributions appears to be stymied by the hermiticity requirement of the AIMS Hamiltonian and the independent first-generation approximation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lea M Ibele
- Department of Chemistry, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom
| | - Basile F E Curchod
- Department of Chemistry, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom
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Merritt ICD, Jacquemin D, Vacher M. Attochemistry: Is Controlling Electrons the Future of Photochemistry? J Phys Chem Lett 2021; 12:8404-8415. [PMID: 34436903 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c02016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Controlling matter with light has always been a great challenge, leading to the ever-expanding field of photochemistry. In addition, since the first generation of light pulses of attosecond (1 as = 10-18 s) duration, a great deal of effort has been devoted to observing and controlling electrons on their intrinsic time scale. Because of their short duration, attosecond pulses have a large spectral bandwidth populating several electronically excited states in a coherent manner, i.e., an electronic wavepacket. Because of interference, such a wavepacket has a new electronic distribution implying a potentially different and totally new reactivity as compared to traditional photochemistry, leading to the novel concept of "attochemistry". This nascent field requires the support of theory right from the start. In this Perspective, we discuss the opportunities offered by attochemistry, the related challenges, and the current and future state-of-the-art developments in theoretical chemistry needed to model it accurately.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Denis Jacquemin
- Université de Nantes, CNRS, CEISAM, UMR 6230, F-44000 Nantes, France
| | - Morgane Vacher
- Université de Nantes, CNRS, CEISAM, UMR 6230, F-44000 Nantes, France
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Olivucci M, Tran T, Worth GA, Robb MA. Unlocking the Double Bond in Protonated Schiff Bases by Coherent Superposition of S 1 and S 2. J Phys Chem Lett 2021; 12:5639-5643. [PMID: 34110826 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c01379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The primary event occurring during the E-to-Z photoisomerization reaction of retinal protonated Schiff base (rPSB) is single-to-double bond inversion. In this work we examine the nuclear dynamics that occurs when the initial excited state is a superposition of the S1 and S2 electronic excited states that might be created in a laser experiment. The nuclear dynamics is dominated by double bond inversion that is parallel to the derivative coupling vector of S1 and S2. Thus, the molecule behaves as if it were at a conical intersection even if the states are nondegenerate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Olivucci
- Chemistry Deparment, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro n. 2, 53100 Siena, Italy
- Chemistry Department, Bowling Green State University, Overman Hall, Bowling Green, Ohio 43403, United States
| | - Thierry Tran
- Department of Chemistry, University College London, 20 Gordon Street, WC1H 0AJ London, United Kingdom
- Department of Chemistry, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, Imperial College, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
| | - Graham A Worth
- Department of Chemistry, University College London, 20 Gordon Street, WC1H 0AJ London, United Kingdom
| | - Michael A Robb
- Department of Chemistry, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, Imperial College, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
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Schnappinger T, de Vivie-Riedle R. Coupled nuclear and electron dynamics in the vicinity of a conical intersection. J Chem Phys 2021; 154:134306. [PMID: 33832271 DOI: 10.1063/5.0041365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Ultrafast optical techniques allow us to study ultrafast molecular dynamics involving both nuclear and electronic motion. To support interpretation, theoretical approaches are needed that can describe both the nuclear and electron dynamics. Hence, we revisit and expand our ansatz for the coupled description of the nuclear and electron dynamics in molecular systems (NEMol). In this purely quantum mechanical ansatz, the quantum-dynamical description of the nuclear motion is combined with the calculation of the electron dynamics in the eigenfunction basis. The NEMol ansatz is applied to simulate the coupled dynamics of the molecule NO2 in the vicinity of a conical intersection (CoIn) with a special focus on the coherent electron dynamics induced by the non-adiabatic coupling. Furthermore, we aim to control the dynamics of the system when passing the CoIn. The control scheme relies on the carrier envelope phase of a few-cycle IR pulse. The laser pulse influences both the movement of the nuclei and the electrons during the population transfer through the CoIn.
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