The density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) method were carried out to investigate the ground and excited states of indigo and its derivative molecules. The results demonstrate that the intramolecular hydrogen bond I is weakened and the intramolecular hydrogen bond II is strengthened upon photo-excitation to the S-1 state. In the absorption spectra, the substitution at R4R4, of indigo causes a significant redshift. In addition, the halogen substitution obviously increases the electron transfer mobility of indigo. It is proved that the halogen substitution may be a new method to design high performance organic semiconductors. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.