Vibronic Structures of the Ground and Excited Singlet Electronic States of Dimethylnaphthalenes Cooled in a Supersonic Jet

Abstract Fluorescence excitation and dispersed fluorescence spectra of jet-cooled naphthalene and 2,6-, 2,7-dimethylnaphthalenes have been measured. The frequencies of optical active vibrations in the ground and first excited singlet states have been determined. The new technique for calculation of planar vibration frequencies of polycyclic benzenoid hydrocarbons in the excited electronic states has been developed. The vibration frequencies in the ground and first excited singlet states of these molecules were calculated using the developed technique and the Ohno's model. The interpretation of vibronic spectral lines based on the comparison of the calculated and experimental data was made. The calculation rms errors for the vibration frequencies in the ground electronic states of the investigated molecules do not exceed 20 cm−1 and are approximately 1.5 times higher for excited states without additional adjustment of parameters for individual molecules.