https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.F02510
Classically, the Franck–Condon principle is the approximation that an electronic transition is most likely to occur without changes in the positions of the nuclei in the molecular entity and its environment. The resulting state is called a Franck–Condon state, and the transition involved, a vertical transition. The quantum mechanical formulation of this principle is that the intensity of a @V06618@ is proportional to the square of the @O04357@ between the vibrational wavefunctions of the two states that are involved in the transition.