fotokemisk

Fotokemisk is an adjective used in Swedish to describe chemical processes that are driven by light. It refers to reactions initiated by the absorption of photons, which promotes molecules into electronically excited states and enables bond breaking and forming that may not occur readily in the dark. The term encompasses a wide range of phenomena studied in photochemistry.

Key concepts in fotokemisk research include photoexcitation, intersystem crossing to triplet states, and various light-induced reaction pathways such as photoisomerization, photocycloadditions, and photodecomposition. The concept of quantum yield describes how efficiently absorbed light leads to a chemical change. The Jablonski diagram is a common model used to illustrate transitions between ground, singlet, and triplet states and the events that follow light absorption.

Applications of fotokemisk science are broad. In photography, light exposure alters the chemical state of silver halide crystals to form an image. In industry, photopolymerization and photocuring enable rapid, energy-efficient curing of coatings and adhesives. Photolithography relies on light-driven chemical changes to pattern materials at small scales. Photochemical reactions also contribute to photocatalysis, environmental remediation, and solar-energy conversion. In atmospheric and environmental chemistry, photochemical processes drive the formation and breakdown of pollutants and atmospheric species.

Overall, fotokemisk is a multidisciplinary field at the intersection of chemistry, physics and materials science, focused on understanding and exploiting reactions initiated by light.