THE GROUND AND EXCITED-STATE ELECTRONIC-STRUCTURES OF RUTHENIUM QUINONES AND RELATED SPECIES

Electronic and resonance Raman spectroscopy are used to probe the elec tronic structures of bipyridine ruthenium complexes of quinone and a s eries of derivatives in which the oxygen atoms of quinone are successi vely replaced by NH. The electronic structures of some benzoquinonedii mine species are probed by variation of substituent in the benzene rin g, and the properties of a diaminophenyl substituted benzoquinonediimi ne are explored as a function of the twist at the 1,1'-link.