Singlet fission — converting a singlet exciton to two triplet excitons — may be useful for improving photovoltaic efficiency. Ultrafast spectroscopic measurements and quantum chemical calculations have now uncovered aspects of the process critical to it occurring efficiently, including the role of intermolecular vibrations and symmetry breaking, and the location of a conical intersection on the excited-state potential-energy surface.
- Kiyoshi Miyata
- Yuki Kurashige
- Yoshiyasu Matsumoto