Time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations have been carried out to study the electronic structure and the optical properties of five coumarin based dyes: C343, NKX-2311, NKX-2586, NKX-2753 and NKX-2593. We have found out that the position and width of the first band in the electronic absorption spectra, the absorption threshold and the LUMO energy with respect to the conduction band edge are key parameters in order to establish some criteria that allow evaluating the efficiency of coumarin derivatives as sensitizers in Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC). Those criteria predict the efficiency ordering for the coumarin series in good agreement with the experimental evidence. Presumably, they might be used in the design of new efficient organic based DSSC.

The electronic structure and the optical response of free catechol, [Ti(cat)₃]^{2 −} complex, and catechol bound to TiO₂ nanoclusters have been analysed using time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) performing calculations both in real time and frequency domains. Both approaches lead to similar results providing the basis sets and functionals are similar. For all cases, the simulated spectra agree well with the experimental ones. For the adsorption systems, the spectra show a band at 4.7 eV associated to intramolecular catechol π → π* transitions, and low energy bands corresponding to transitions from catechol to the cluster with a tail that is red-shifted when the coupling between the dye and the cluster is more effective. Thus, dissociative adsorption modes provide longer tails than the molecular mode. Although the bidentate complex is more stable than the monodentate, the energy difference between both is smaller when the cluster size increases. Small cluster models reproduce the main features of the optical response, however, the (TiO₂)₁₅ cluster constitutes the minimal size to provide a complete picture. In this case, the conventional TD-DFT (frequency domain) calculations are highly demanding computationally, while real time TD-DFT is more efficient and the calculations become affordable.