Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Mapping the Structure-Function Relationships of Disordered Oncogenic Transcription Factors Using Transcriptomic Analysis
Published on: June 27, 2020
Ground-State Structural Disorder and Excited-State Symmetry Breaking in a Quadrupolar Molecule
Magnus Söderberg1, Bogdan Dereka1, Assunta Marrocchi2
1Department of Physical Chemistry , University of Geneva , 30 quai Ernest-Ansermet , CH-1211 Geneva , Switzerland.
Abstract:
The influence of torsional disorder around the ethynyl π-bridges of a linear D-π-A-π-D molecule on the nature of its S1 excited state was investigated using ultrafast time-resolved infrared spectroscopy. By tuning the pump wavelength throughout the S1 ← S0 absorption band, subpopulations with different extents of asymmetry could be excited. In nonpolar solvents, the equilibrated S1 state is symmetric and quadrupolar independently of the initial degree of distortion. Photoexcitation of distorted molecules is followed by planarization and symmetrization of the S1 state. Excited-state symmetry breaking is only observed in polar environments, where the equilibrated S1 state has a strong dipolar character. However, neither the extent nor the rate of symmetry breaking are enhanced in an initially distorted molecule. They are only determined by the polarity and the dynamic properties of the solvent.
More Related Videos
11:58Using In Vitro and In-cell SHAPE to Investigate Small Molecule Induced Pre-mRNA Structural Changes
Published on: January 30, 2019
11:37Generation of Aggregates of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells that Show Symmetry Breaking, Polarization and Emergent Collective Behaviour In Vitro
Published on: November 24, 2015
Related Concept Videos
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins
Fixing Double-strand Breaks
Gauss's Law: Planar Symmetry
Symmetry in Maxwell's Equations
Taping Over Different Ground Profiles
Gauss's Law: Spherical Symmetry