Symmetry breaking charge transfer (SBCT) in excited molecules plays a central role in photochemical energy conversion in both artificial and biological systems. The photophysical properties of chromophore aggregates can be tuned over a wide range, which opens up prospects for their application in optoelectronic devices, as well as photosensitizers-catalysts. SBCT occurs at a high rate, so its use at the stage of primary charge separation can be effective in the development of organic photovoltaic devices. The processes of symmetry breaking in quadrupolar and octupolar molecules and symmetrical dimers are analyzed from a unified standpoint. The manifestations of symmetry breaking in the IR and optical spectra are described. The most important experimental results and their theoretical description within simple models are discussed. Particular attention is paid to the physical interpretation of regularities observed in experiments.

受激分子中的对称破缺电荷转移（SBCT）在人工和生物系统的光化学能量转换中发挥着核心作用。发色团聚集体的光物理性质可以在很大范围内调节，这为其在光电器件以及光敏剂催化剂中的应用开辟了前景。SBCT发生率很高，因此在初级电荷分离阶段使用它可以有效地开发有机光伏器件。从统一的角度分析了四极和八极分子以及对称二聚体的对称性破缺过程。描述了红外光谱和光谱中对称性破缺的表现。讨论了最重要的实验结果及其在简单模型中的理论描述。特别关注实验中观察到的规律性的物理解释。