The Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemisty Program supports research on intramolecular light-induced electron transfer in chemical systems. The research may give insight into the ability of the photosynthetic reaction center to continue to function at low temperatures. Investigations of photoinduced electron and energy transfer in complex intramolecular systems will be continued. The studies will be based on the metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) excited states of polypyridyl complexes of Ru(II), Os(II) or Re(I), incorporated into chromophore-quencher or ligand-bridged, dimeric metal complex assemblies. In properly designed cases, it will be possible to explore intramolecular electron and energy transfer and competition between these processes in complex molecules, the appearance and decay of long-lived charge separated states and the role of solvent and, in some cases, pH, in dictating transition rates and lifetimes.
