Stark spectroscopy of mixed-valence systems

Many mixed-valence systems involve two or more states with different electric dipole moments whose magnitudes depend upon the charge transfer distance and the degree of delocalization; these systems can be interconverted by excitation of an intervalence charge transfer transition. Stark spectroscopy involves the interaction between the change in dipole moment of a transition and an electric field, so the Stark spectra of mixed-valence systems are expected to provide quantitative information on the degree of delocalization. In limiting cases, a classical Stark analysis can be used, but in intermediate cases the analysis is much more complex because the field affects not only the band position but also the intrinsic bandshape. Such non-classical Stark effects lead to widely different bandshapes. Several examples of both classes are discussed. Because electric fields are applied to immobilized samples, complications arise from inhomogeneous broadening, along with other effects that limit our ability to extract unique parameters in some cases. In the case of the radical cation of the special pair in photosynthetic reaction centres, where the mixed-valence system is in a very complex but structurally well-defined environment, a detailed analysis can be performed.