The molecular photonics of porphyrins are studied using a combination of first-principle and semi-empirical calculations. The applicability of the approach is demonstrated by calculations on free-base porphyrin, tetraphenylporphyrin, and tetrabenzoporphyrin. The method uses excitation energies and oscillator strengths calculated at the linear-response time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) or the corresponding values calculated at the linear-response approximate second-order coupled-cluster (CC2) levels. The lowest singlet excitation energies obtained in the TDDFT and CC2 calculations are 0.0-0.28 eV and 0.18-0.47 eV larger than the experimental values, respectively. The excitation energies for the first triplet state calculated at the TDDFT level are in excellent agreement with experiment, whereas the corresponding CC2 values have larger deviations from experiment of 0.420.66 eV. The matrix elements of the spin-orbit and non-adiabatic coupling operators have been calculated at the semi-empirical intermediate neglect of differential overlap (INDO) level using a spectroscopic parameterization. The calculations yield rate constants for internal conversion and intersystem crossing processes as well as quantum yields for fluorescence and phosphorescence. The main mechanism for the quenching of fluorescence in tetraphenylporphyrin and tetrabenzoporphyrin is the internal conversion, whereas for free-base porphyrin both the internal conversion and the intersystem crossing processes reduce the fluorescence intensity. The phosphorescence is quenched by a fast internal conversion from the triplet to the ground state.

376Results of quantum-chemical studies of the nile red (NR) molecule and its protonated structures by the INDO/S method are presented. It is demonstrated that the best agreement between the calculated and experimental data is obtained for the flat molecule in the ground electron state. Energies of the strongest singlet and triplet electronic states, molecular nature of these states, transition oscillator force, dipole moments in the ground and excited states, electron density distribution around atoms and molecular fragments in the S 0 and S 1 states, and rate constants of radiative, internal, and intercombination conversion are presented for the NR molecule and its protonated structures. The most probable NR protonation centers are analyzed using the molecular electrostatic potential (MESP) method. It is established that the reaction of proton addition to the NR molecule proceeds at the cyclic nitrogen atom. As demonstrated the results of quantum-chemical calculations, low fluorescent properties of the protonated NR structures (with a quantum yield of 4%) are due to a high rate of the S 1 -T 4 intercombination conversion.Keywords: nile red, protonated nile red structure, quantum-chemical investigations, INDO/S method, electron absorption spectra, fluorescence, photophysical parameters.Nile red (NR) is a widely known yellow-red laser dye that possesses clearly pronounced solvatofluorochromic properties [1]. These properties allow NR to be used to determine polarities of biological objects and polymeric and organic-inorganic systems, including proteins and ormosils, to synthesize optical sensor materials to detect the presence of vapors of various organic solvents, etc. [2][3][4].Owing to the presence of proton-acceptor oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the NR molecule ( Fig. 1) in acidic media, the protonated structure possessing the spectral and luminescent properties that differ from the properties of the neutral molecule can be formed.In the present work, the spectral and luminescent properties of NR and its protonated structures are investigated both theoretically and experimentally. EXPERIMENTALThe spectral and luminescent properties of NR and its protonated structures were theoretically investigated using the quantum-chemical software package based on the method of intermediate neglect of differential overlap (INDO) with special spectroscopic parameterization [5]. The software package allowed calculations of the following characteristics of the electronically excited states of polyatomic molecules: the energy and nature of molecular orbitals, energy of singlet and triplet electronically excited states, oscillator force and polarization of electron transitions, electron density distribution around atoms and bonds of the molecule, and dipole moments in the ground and excited

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The photophysical and isomerization properties of hybrid molecular compounds that consist of photochromic nitro-substituted and halogenated spiropyran derivatives bonded to the surface of the [60]fullerene cage through the pyrrolidine bridge were investigated using various functionals and basis sets of TD-DFT and semiempirical quantum-chemical approaches. The role of nπ* states formed by the lone pairs of substituents in changing of the electronic structure and photochromic properties of spiropyran derivatives was evaluated. The S(spiropyran) → intermediate nπ* states → S(merocyanine) channel for phototransformation of the hybrid compound containing a nitro-substituted spiropyran moiety was established and compared with similar systems of halogenated spiropyrans attached to the [60]fullerene bulk where photoinduced isomerization does not process due to high probability of internal conversion from the excited electronic state localized on the spiropyran fragment to the states of the pyrrolidino[60]fullerene.

A detailed account of quantum chemical procedures for estimating the rate constants of the photophysical processes at work in polyatomic organic molecules is given. The results obtained from combined experimental and theoretical research into the spectral-luminescent properties of acridine, 9-aminoacridine, 2,7-dimethyl-9-diphenylaminoacridine, and of their protonated forms are reported. The electronic absorption and fluorescence spectra of acridine have been investigated at room temperature in ethanol solution of varying pH and in other solvents of different chemical nature and polarity. The energy of excited states, the rate constants of the deactivation of the excited states, and the dipole moments obtained by quantum chemical methods for the examined compounds are presented. The findings of the investigations are discussed.