Pump probe spectroscopy techniques have enabled the direct observation of a variety of transient molecular species in both ground and excited electronic states. Time-resolved vibrational spectroscopy is becoming an indispensable tool for investigating photoinduced nuclear dynamics of chemical systems of all kinds.

We developed a transient vibrational analysis protocol combining ab initio direct molecular dynamics and time-integrated normal modes, relying on the recent development of analytic time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) second derivatives for excited states. Prototypical molecules have been used as test cases, showing the evolution of the vibrational signatures that follow electronic excitation. This protocol provides a direct route to assigning the vibrations implicated in the (photo)dynamics of several (photoactive) systems. This work is published in J. Phys. Chem. Lett. and can be found here.