Photoelectrochemical effects in the electrolyte-pigment-metal system

Abstract

Short-circuit photocurrents produced by a semitransparent metallic electrode covered with multilayers of chlorophyll and immersed in an electrolyte have been studied. The action spectrum of maximum photocurrent is identical to the absorption spectrum of the film of pigment. The kinetics of rise of the photocurrent are photoindependent for thin multilayers but dependent on thickness. Comparison of efficiency of light energy conversion on the basis of short-circuit photocurrent seems to show that the stack of Chla monolayers is the more efficient chlorophyll solid system. Introduction for the same number of Chla molecules of vitamin K₁ and Phytol shows that vitamin K₁ acts probably like an excitation quencher as in monolayers at the water-air interface.