title: Mechanism and dynamics of azobenzene photoisomerization.
abstract: The excited-state dynamics of trans-azobenzene were investigated by femtosecond time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy and ab initio molecular dynamics. Two near-degenerate pipi* excited states, S2 and S3,4, were identified in a region hitherto associated with only one excited state. These results help to explain contradictory reports about the photoisomerization mechanism and the wavelength dependence of the quantum yield. A new model for the isomerization mechanism is proposed.
authors.affiliation: Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1N 0R6.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schultz
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Quenneville
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Toniolo
authors.forename: Todd J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lochbrunner
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schmitt
authors.forename: James P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Shaffer
authors.forename: Marek Z
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Zgierski
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stolow