Quantum biological effects in photosynthesis revealed by two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy

Date	24 Feb 2025
Time	5:30 pm - 6:30 pm (HKT)
Venue	Lecture Theatre P3, Chong Yuet Ming Physics Building
Speaker	Prof. Yuxiang WENG
Institution	Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

Title:

Schedule:

Date: 24^th February, 2025 (Monday)

Time: 5:30 - 6:30 pm (HKT)

Venue: Lecture Theatre P3, Chong Yuet Ming Physics Building

Speaker:

Prof. Yuxiang WENG

Institute of Physics

Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

Biography:

Yuxiang Weng, Professor, Director of Laboratory of Soft Matter Physics, Institute of Physics (IOP, CAS).Bachelor and Master degrees from Department of Chemistry, East China Normal University in 1985 and 1988 respectively. Ph.D. degree in laser physics from IOP in 1993. Postdoctor in Prof. Chi-Ming Che’s group in the University of Hong Kong (1994-1997), and Prof. Tim Lian’s group in Emory University (USA, 1997-1999). Then joined in IOP in 1999, and was promoted as a full professor in 2000. He was awarded with China National Funds for Distinguished Young Scientists in 2009. His research interest is ultrafast laser spectroscopic study of real and artificial photosynthetic systems.

Abstract:

The concept of quantum coherence is derived from the superposition principle in quantum mechanics. The advent of ultrashort laser pulse having a broad band spectrum can easily create superposition of a number of excited states undergoing quantum coherence. For solar-energy inspired materials and photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes, coherent energy transfer is expected to have a higher efficiency than the classical pathway, while elucidating the nature of the coherence, i.e., electronic, electronic-vibtrational coupling and vibrational, is still challenging. Two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy (2DES) is a powerful tool in elucidating the coherent energy transfer, exciton delocalization and many other coherent processes In this talk, I will briefly introduce the principle and implementation of 2DES, and then report the recent progresses in exploring biological quantum effects either by using 2DES or other time-resolved spectroscopic methods in our group: (1) A proposed a model of multi-vibrational modes coupled to displaced oscillator to account for the observed vibronic coherence bacteriochloropyll a. (2) quantum phase synchronization via electronic-vibronic energy dissipation sustains long-lived coherence to support coherent energy transfer in allophycocyanin trimer which is a photosynthetic light-harvesting pigment-protein complex located in the phycobilisomes of cyanobacteria and red algae. (3) A quantum switch in light-harvesting complex of photosystem II (LHCII) of high plants regulating the state transition between light-harvesting and photo-protection (non-photochemical quenching, NPQ).

References:

1. Yue, S.,et al., Chem. Phys. Lett. 2017, 683, 591.

2. Zhu, R. et al.,J. Phys. Chem. A 2020, 124, 9333-9342.

3. Li, H., et al., Science China Chemistry, 2020, 63(8)1121-1133.

4. Ruan, M., et al., Nature Plants, 2023,9,1547-1557.

5. Zhu, R. et al., Nature Communications, 2024, 15, 3171.

6. Wang, J. et al., J. Chem. Phys.2024, 161, 085101.

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