Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Physical chemistry

Quantum mechanics for plants

  • News & Views
  • Published:

From Nature

View current issue Submit your manuscript

To what extent do photosynthetic organisms use quantum mechanics to optimize the capture and distribution of light? Answers are emerging from the examination of energy transfer at the submolecular scale.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1: Designs for energy transfer.

References

  1. Jang, S., Newton, M. D. & Silbey, R. J. Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 218301 (2004).

    Article  ADS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Sundström, V., Pullerits, T. & van Grondelle, R. J. Phys. Chem. B 103, 2327–2346 (1999).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Förster, Th. Ann. Phys. 2, 55–75 (1948).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Van Der Meer, B. W., Coker, G. & Chen, S.-Y. S. Resonance Energy Transfer: Theory and Data (VCH, New York, 1994).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Scholes, G. D., Jordanides, X. J. & Fleming, G. R. J. Phys. Chem. B 105, 1640–1651 (2001).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. van Amerongen, H., Valkunas, L. & van Grondelle, R. Photosynthetic Excitons (World Scientific, Singapore, 2000).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  7. Sumi, H. J. J. Phys. Chem. B 103, 252–260 (1999).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Scholes, G. D. & Fleming, G. R. J. Phys. Chem. B 104, 1853–1868 (2000).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Ambrose, W. P. & Moerner, W. E. Nature 349, 225–227 (1991).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Holt, N. E., Fleming, G. R. & Niyogi, K. K. Biochemistry 43, 8281–8289 (2004).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Jordanides, X. J., Scholes, G. D., Shapley, W. A., Reimers, J. R. & Fleming, G. R. J. Phys. Chem. B 108, 1753–1765 (2004).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley

    Graham R. Fleming

  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, 94720, California, USA

    Graham R. Fleming

  3. the Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, Lash Miller Chemical Laboratories, 80 St George Street, Toronto, M5S 3H6, Ontario, Canada

    Gregory D. Scholes

Authors
  1. Graham R. Fleming
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Gregory D. Scholes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Fleming, G., Scholes, G. Quantum mechanics for plants. Nature 431, 256–257 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/431256a

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/431256a

  • Springer Nature Limited

This article is cited by

Search

Navigation