Some of the new unique features of the MOLCAS quantum chemistry package version 7 are presented in this report. In particular, the Cholesky decomposition method applied to some quantum chemical methods is described. This approach is used both in the context of a straight forward approximation of the two-electron integrals and in the generation of so-called auxiliary basis sets. The article describes how the method is implemented for most known wave functions models: self-consistent field, density functional theory, 2nd order perturbation theory, complete-active space self-consistent field multiconfigurational reference 2nd order perturbation theory, and coupled-cluster methods. The report further elaborates on the implementation of a restricted-active space self-consistent field reference function in conjunction with 2nd order perturbation theory. The average atomic natural orbital basis for relativistic calculations, covering the whole periodic table, are described and associated unique properties are demonstrated. Furthermore, the use of the arbitrary order Douglas-Kroll-Hess transformation for one-component relativistic calculations and its implementation are discussed. This section especially focuses on the implementation of the so-called picture-change-free atomic orbital property integrals. Moreover, the ElectroStatic Potential Fitted scheme, a version of a quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics hybrid method implemented in MOLCAS, is described and discussed. Finally, the report discusses the use of the MOLCAS package for advanced studies of photo chemical phenomena and the usefulness of the algorithms for constrained geometry optimization in MOLCAS in association with such studies.

to be used for computations of large systems. In addition, the report includes the description of a computational machinery for nonlinear optical spectroscopy through an interface to the QM/MM package Cobramm. Further, a module to run molecular dynamics simulations is added and two surface hopping algorithms are included to enable nonadiabatic calculations. Finally, we report on the subject of improvements with respects to alternative file options and parallelization.

The primary event that initiates vision is the photoinduced isomerization of retinal in the visual pigment rhodopsin (Rh). Here, we use a scaled quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics potential that reproduces the isomerization path determined with multiconfigurational perturbation theory to follow the excited-state evolution of bovine Rh. The analysis of a 140-fs trajectory provides a description of the electronic and geometrical changes that prepare the system for decay to the ground state. The data uncover a complex change of the retinal backbone that, at Ϸ60-fs delay, initiates a space saving ''asynchronous bicycle-pedal or crankshaft'' motion, leading to a conical intersection on a 110-fs time scale. It is shown that the twisted structure achieved at decay features a momentum that provides a natural route toward the photoRh structure recently resolved by using femtosecond-stimulated Raman spectroscopy.photoisomerization ͉ rhodopsin ͉ vision T he visual pigment rhodopsin (Rh) (1, 2) is a G protein-coupled receptor containing a 11-cis retinal chromophore (PSB11) bounded to a lysine residue (Lys-296) via a protonated Schiff base linkage (see Fig. 1). While the biological activity of Rh is triggered by the light-induced 11-cis all-trans isomerization of PSB11, this reaction owes its efficiency (e.g., short time scale and high quantum yields) to the protein cavity (1). Recently, the mechanism of the isomerization of retinal in Rh has been investigated by using femtosecond-stimulated Raman spectroscopy (FSRS) (3). Kukura et al. (3) have reported on experimentally derived structures of photoRh and bathoRh, namely the first and second ground-state intermediates of the Rh photocycle.While such progress has provided information on the structural changes achieved 200 fs after light absorption, the faster structural changes prompting the excited-state decay of PSB11 (i.e., the central event of the isomerization mechanism) remain to be established. Indeed, it has been suggested that such decay may occur on a 60-fs time scale through fast hydrogen out-ofplane (HOOP) motion (3), whereas the traditional view points to a slower Ϸ150-fs decay driven by cis-trans isomerization motion (4). In principle, molecular dynamics simulations featuring a quantum chemical description of the chromophore can be used to address such issues. This fact was shown by Warshel (5) using semiempirical quantum chemistry to describe PSB11 and geometrical constraints to account for the protein environment. Later, Birge and Hubbard (6) reported a different semiempirical study of an explicit chromophore-counterion pair evolving along a single coordinate. While the first simulation of the retinal photoisomerization using a full atomic-level protein model (7) was reported for the related receptor bacterio-Rh (bR), attempts to simulate the PSB11 excited-state motion in a complete Rh model are more recent (8-10). On the other hand, a quantitative evaluation of the isomerization coordinate and time scale requires, as a prerequisite, an accurate excited-st...

Bioluminescence is a phenomenon that has fascinated mankind for centuries. Today the phenomenon and its sibling, chemiluminescence, have impacted society with a number of useful applications in fields like analytical chemistry and medicine, just to mention two. In this review, a molecular-orbital perspective is adopted to explain the chemistry behind chemiexcitation in both chemi- and bioluminescence. First, the uncatalyzed thermal dissociation of 1,2-dioxetane is presented and analyzed to explain, for example, the preference for triplet excited product states and increased yield with larger nonreactive substituents. The catalyzed fragmentation reaction and related details are then exemplified with substituted 1,2-dioxetanone species. In particular, the preference for singlet excited product states in that case is explained. The review also examines the diversity of specific solutions both in Nature and in artificial systems and the difficulties in identifying the emitting species and unraveling the color modulation process. The related subject of excited-state chemistry without light absorption is finally discussed. The content of this review should be an inspiration to human design of new molecular systems expressing unique light-emitting properties. An appendix describing the state-of-the-art experimental and theoretical methods used to study the phenomena serves as a complement.

We demonstrate that a ''brute force'' quantum chemical calculation based on an ab initio multiconfigurational second order perturbation theory approach implemented in a quantum mechanics͞ molecular mechanics strategy can be applied to the investigation of the excited state of the visual pigment rhodopsin (Rh) with a computational error <5 kcal⅐mol ؊1 . As a consequence, the simulation of the absorption and fluorescence of Rh and its retinal chromophore in solution allows for a nearly quantitative analysis of the factors determining the properties of the protein environment. More specifically, we demonstrate that the Rh environment is more similar to the ''gas phase'' than to the solution environment and that the so-called ''opsin shift'' originates from the inability of the solvent to effectively ''shield'' the chromophore from its counterion. The same strategy is used to investigate three transient structures involved in the photoisomerization of Rh under the assumption that the protein cavity does not change shape during the reaction. Accordingly, the analysis of the initially relaxed excited-state structure, the conical intersection driving the excitedstate decay, and the primary isolable bathorhodopsin intermediate supports a mechanism where the photoisomerization coordinate involves a ''motion'' reminiscent of the so-called bicycle-pedal reaction coordinate. Most importantly, it is shown that the mechanism of the Ϸ30 kcal⅐mol ؊1 photon energy storage observed for Rh is not consistent with a model based exclusively on the change of the electrostatic interaction of the chromophore with the protein͞counterion environment.photoisomerization ͉ quantum mechanics ͉ molecular mechanics ͉ retinal ͉ vision T he visual pigment rhodopsin (Rh) (1, 2) is a G proteincoupled receptor containing an 11-cis retinal chromophore (PSB11) bounded to a lysine residue (Lys-296) via a protonated Schiff base linkage (see Scheme 1). While the biological activity of Rh is triggered by the light-induced 11-cis 3 all-trans isomerization of PSB11, this reaction owes its efficiency (e.g., short time scale and quantum yields) to the protein cavity (1). Accordingly, investigation of the environment-dependent properties of PSB11 is a prerequisite for understanding the Rh ''catalytic'' effect. The equilibrium geometry, absorption maxima ( max a ), and fluorescence maxima ( max f ) are indicators of the environment effect. In fact, whereas the geometry of PSB11 is nearly planar in a crystal (3), in bovine Rh it has a helical conformation (4). Similarly, the 445-nm max a observed for PSB11 in methanol (5) is red-shifted to 498 nm in Rh (1, 2): an effect known as the opsin shift.The Rh fluorescence band ranges from 530 to 780 nm (6). The max f has been reported (6) to be excitation wavelength-dependent, shifting from 595 to 704 nm when the excitation wavelength is shifted from 472 to 568 nm. This observation is consistent with the idea that the emission arises from a nonstationary unrelaxed excited-state population. In methanol solution the PSB11...

MOLCAS/OpenMolcas is an ab initio electronic structure program providing a large set of computational methods from Hartree–Fock and density functional theory to various implementations of multiconfigurational theory. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the main features of the code, specifically reviewing the use of the code in previously reported chemical applications as well as more recent applications including the calculation of magnetic properties from optimized density matrix renormalization group wave functions.

We report and characterize ground-state and excited-state potential energy profiles using a variety of electronic structure methods along a loop lying on the branching plane associated with a conical intersection (CI) of a reduced retinal model, the penta-2,4-dieniminium cation (PSB3). Whereas the performance of the equation-of-motion coupled-cluster, density functional theory, and multireference methods had been tested along the excited- and ground-state paths of PSB3 in our earlier work, the ability of these methods to correctly describe the potential energy surface shape along a CI branching plane has not yet been investigated. This is the focus of the present contribution. We find, in agreement with earlier studies by others, that standard time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) does not yield the correct two-dimensional (i.e., conical) crossing along the branching plane but rather a one-dimensional (i.e., linear) crossing along the same plane. The same type of behavior is found for SS-CASPT2(IPEA=0), SS-CASPT2(IPEA=0.25), spin-projected SF-TDDFT, EOM-SF-CCSD, and, finally, for the reference MRCISD+Q method. In contrast, we found that MRCISD, CASSCF, MS-CASPT2(IPEA=0), MS-CASPT2(IPEA=0.25), XMCQDPT2, QD-NEVPT2, non-spin-projected SF-TDDFT, and SI-SA-REKS yield the expected conical crossing. To assess the effect of the different crossing topologies (i.e., linear or conical) on the PSB3 photoisomerization efficiency, we discuss the results of 100 semiclassical trajectories computed by CASSCF and SS-CASPT2(IPEA=0.25) for a PSB3 derivative. We show that for the same initial conditions, the two methods yield similar dynamics leading to isomerization quantum yields that differ by only a few percent.

Rhodopsin (Rh) and bathorhodopsin (bathoRh) quantum-mechanics/molecular-mechanics models based on ab initio multiconfigurational wave functions are employed to look at the light induced π-bond breaking and reconstitution occurring during the Rh → bathoRh and bathoRh → Rh isomerizations. More specifically, semiclassical trajectory computations are used to compare the excited (S(1)) and ground (S(0)) state dynamics characterizing the opposite steps of the Rh/bathoRh photochromic cycle during the first 200 fs following photoexcitation. We show that the information contained in these data provide an unprecedented insight into the sub-picosecond π-bond reconstitution process which is at the basis of the reactivity of the protein embedded 11-cis and all-trans retinal chromophores. More specifically, the data point to the phase and amplitude of the skeletal bond length alternation stretching mode as the key factor switching the chromophore to a bonding state. It is also confirmed/found that the phase and amplitude of the hydrogen-out-of-plane mode controls the stereochemical outcome of the forward and reverse photoisomerizations.