Photosynthetic systems and their constituents

In photosynthesis, light is converted into chemical energy. Absorption of a photon creates an excited state delocalized over several pigments; we call this state a (photosynthetic) exciton. This state transfers efficiently to a so-called reaction centre, where conversion into an electrochemical gradient occurs. The efficiency of this process is remarkably high: At low light intensities, nine out of ten photons create a charge-separated state. Studying the underlying fundamental processes can pave the way towards bio-inspired, artificial light-harvesting systems.
We use ultrafast spectroscopic methods to study energy transfer and the structure-function relationship in naturally occuring pigment-protein complexes and their constituting chromophores.

Visualization of excitonic energy transfer in the Fenna-Mathews-Olsen light harvesting complex

Involved group members

Further reading

Renger, T.; May, V.; Kühn, O. Ultrafast excitation energy transfer dynamics in photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes. Physics Reports-Review Section of Physics Letters 2001, 343 (3), 138-254, DOI: 10.1016/S0370-1573(00)00078-8.

Mančal, T. Excitation Energy Transfer in a Classical Analogue of Photosynthetic Antennae. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B 2013, 117 (38), 11282-11291, DOI: 10.1021/jp402101z.

Own work

Cao, J.; Cogdell, R. J.; Coker, D. F.; Duan, H.-G.; Hauer, J.; Kleinekathöfer, U.; Jansen, T. L. C.; Mančal, T.; Miller, R. J. D.; Ogilvie, J. P.; et al. Quantum biology revisited. Science Advances 2020, 6 (14), eaaz4888. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz4888.

Šebelík, V.; Duffy, C. D. P.; Keil, E.; Polívka, T.; Hauer, J. Understanding Carotenoid Dynamics via the Vibronic Energy Relaxation Approach. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B 2022, 126 (22), 3985-3994, DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c00996.