Ultrafast stimulated emission and structural dynamics in nickel porphyrins

The excited-state structural dynamics of nickel(II)tetrakis(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)porphyrin (NiTMP) and nickel(II)tetrakis(tridec-7-yl)porphyrin (NiSWTP) in a toluene solution were investigated via ultrafast transient optical absorption spectroscopy. An ultrashort stimulated emission between 620 and 670 nm from the S1 state was observed in both nickel porphyrins only when this state was directly generated via Q-band excitation, whereas such a stimulated emission was absent under B (Soret)-band excitation. Because the stimulated emission in the spectral region occurs only from the S1 state, this photoexcitation-wavelength-dependent behavior of Ni(II) porphyrins is attributed to a faster intersystem crossing from the S2 state than the internal conversion S2 --> S1. The dynamics of the excited-state pathways involving the (pi, pi*) and (d, d) states varies with the meso-substituted peripheral groups, which is attributed to the nickel porphyrin macrocycle distortion from a planar configuration. Evidence for intramolecular vibrational relaxation within 2 ps and vibrational cooling in 6-20 ps of a (d, d) excited state has been established for NiTMP and NiSWTP. Finally, the lifetimes of the vibrationally relaxed (d, d) state also depend on the nature of the peripheral groups, decreasing from 200 ps for NiTMP to 100 ps for the bulkier NiSWTP.