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We used fluorescence spectroscopic measurements as a probe to study the self-healing properties of anthraquinone derivative molecules doped in poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). 2,4-dibromo anthraquinone dye doped in PMMA recovers after photodegradation. Its dynamics differs from other anthraquinone derivative molecules. This could be due to the relatively heavier bromine atom attached to one of the carbon atoms of the benzene ring. In this paper, we will discuss the self-healing properties of 2,4-dibromo anthraquinone doped in PMMA matrix. We also tested the correlated chromophore domain model (CCrDM) and have characterized the self-healing properties by determining the CCrDM parameters. We also estimated the self-absorption of fluorescence signal by the dye molecule without which the analysis of the self-recovery of the molecule would be incomplete., Comment: This is a regular research article. It has 11 pages and 18 Figures

Reversible photodegradation is a process that has been observed in several dye molecules, but the underlying mechanisms are not still well understood. In this contribution, we characterize a series of anthraquinone dyes to determine how self-healing depends on molecular structure. Past studies have used probing techniques that rely on linear absorption, two-photon fluorescence, and amplified spontaneous emission. Each of these probes provide an indirect measure of the populations of the damaged and undamaged species, requiring calibrations or assumptions to be made that might affect the accuracy of the results. The present studies use fluorescence as a probe, which is shown to directly measure the undamaged population. It is found that certain anthraquinone classes share common structural features that are associated with self healing. Furthermore, the time and temperature dependence of photodegradation and self-healing is found to be consistent with the domain model of self healing.

It has long been known that infrared fine structure lines of abundant ions, like the [O III] 88 micron line, can become optically thick in H II regions under certain high luminosity conditions. This could mitigate their potential as diagnostic tools, especially if the source is too dusty for optical spectroscopy to otherwise determine the system's parameters. We examined a series of photoionization calculations which were designed to push the nebulae into the limit where many IR lines should be quite optically thick. We find that radiative transfer effects do not significantly change the observed emission line spectrum. This is due to a combination of grain absorption of the hydrogen ionizing continuum and the fact that the correction for stimulated emission in these lines is large. Given these results, and the likelihood that real objects have non-thermal line broadening, it seems unlikely that line optical depth presents a problem in using these lines as diagnostics of the physical conditions or chemical composition., Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, to be published in the February 2003 issue of the PASP