Abstract

The photoisomerization of cis-stilbene is of particular interest as a test for theories of solvent effects on reactions occurring on barrierless or nearly barrierless potential surfaces. Recently the dynamics of photoexcited cis-stilbene in solution have been studied by several groups through subpicosecond absorption and fluorescence methods. [1-4] While these techniques allow detailed kinetic studies to be performed, they provide relatively little information about structure. We are carrying out complementary studies which utilize pump-probe antistokes resonance Raman spectroscopy to probe the structural and vibrational relaxation of the ground-state photoproducts.

© 1992 The Author(s)