We present a quantum mechanical wave packet study for the unimolecular dissociation of a triatomic molecule into an atom and a diatom. The 3D potential energy surface used in the dynamics calculations is that of the jj state of water corresponding to the second absorption band. Both OH stretching coordinates and the bending angle are included. What is not taken into account is the strong nonadiabatic coupling to the lower-lying A and X states which in reality drastically shortens the lifetime in the jj state. For this reason the present study is not a realistic account of the dissociation dynamics of water in the 122 nm band. It is, however, a representational investigation of a unimolecular reaction evolving on a realistic potential energy surface without barrier. The main focus is the resonance structure of the absorption spectrum and the final rotational state distributions of the OH fragment. The total absorption spectrum as well as the partial dissociation cross sections for individual rotational states of OH show drastic fluctuations caused by overlapping resonances. The widths of the individual resonances increase, on average, with the excess energy which has the consequence that the cross sections become gradually smoother. Although the low-energy part of the spectrum is rather irregular, it shows "clumps" of resonances with an uniform spacing of ~O.l eV. They are discussed in the context of IVR and a particular unstable periodic orbit. In accordance with the fluctuations in the partial dissociation cross sections as functions of the excess energy the final rotational state distributions show pronounced, randomlike fluctuations which are extremely sensitive on the energy. The average is given by the statistical limit (PST), in which all levels are populated with equal probability. With increasing excess energy the distributions more and more exhibit dynamical features which are reminiscent of direct dissociation like rainbows and associated interferences. Classical trajectories for small excess energies are chaotic, as tested by means of the rotational excitation function, but become gradually more regular with increasing energy. Our wave packet calculations hence demonstrate how the transition from the chaotic to the regular regime shows up in a fully quantum mechanical treatment. The results of the present investigation are in qualitative accord with recent measurements for the unimolecular dissociation of N0 2 .

The photodissociation of H2O in the second absorption band (X̃→B̃) is investigated in a completely time-dependent approach. The Schrödinger equation is solved by a time-dependent close-coupling method expanding the two-dimensional wave packet in terms of free rotor states. The vibrational degree of freedom of the OH fragment is fixed and only motion on the B̃-state potential-energy surface is considered. The calculated absorption spectrum exhibits a long progression of diffuse structures, ΔE∼0.1 eV, in very good agreement with the experimental spectrum. The structure is readily explained in terms of a recurrence of the autocorrelation function after about 40 fs. The recurrence, in turn, is attributed to special indirect trajectories which on the average perform one oscillation within the deep potential well before they dissociate into products H+OH. These trajections are ‘‘guided’’ by so-called unstable periodic orbits which persist to energies high above the H+OH(2 Σ) threshold. The existence of unstable periodic orbits leading to a recurrence of the autocorrelation function gives, for the first time, a consistent explanation of the diffuse structure in the absorption spectrum of H2 O in the second band.

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Substituent effects are quite important in fine tuning the photonic properties of conjugated molecules. In designing new chromophores, electron-donating or withdrawing substituents affect the electron distribution in the conjugation sequence, and previous studies to establish structureproperty relationships have noted that when second row elements replace first row elements in the structure (e.g. S for O in donor groups), large enhancements of both the second and third order optical nonlinearity are observed. However, along with the observed enhancement of the nonlinearity, a red-shift in the absorption spectra occurs, often with peak broadening and tailing. This absorptivity-nonlinearity trade-off has been a constant concern in proposing organic materials for electro-optic device applications. In this presentation we will review our recent activity in designing new chromophores wherein P replaces N in donor groups and dendrimer building blocks, and the consequences and opportunities resulting from the observed large blue shifts in the spectra.