Dynamics of proton transfer reactions of model base pairs in the ground and excited states: Revisited

Abstract A review of the proton transfer reactions (PTR) of model base pairs such as the 7-azaindole and 1-azacarbazole dimers is presented, including some of the recent progress in the laser spectroscopy of these dimers. Advances in computational chemistry now allow to calculate reliable potential energy surfaces of the excited-state PTR, which is indispensable to understand the experimental results. The comprehensive results on the spectroscopy and reactivity of these dimers are outlined for fully explaining the excited state PTR of model base pairs on the basis of the current theoretical studies. Moreover, the recent studies on the PTR in the ground state relating to a back proton translocation of tautomeric dimer of 7-azaindole are presented. Finally, the outlook on the study of the PTR of model base pairs is addressed to further explore the reaction dynamics of these benchmark systems.