Environment-Assisted Quantum Walks in Photosynthetic Energy Transfer

Environment-Assisted Quantum Walks in Photosynthetic Energy Transfer

2008 | Mohseni, Masoud, Patrick Rebentrost, Seth Lloyd, and Alan Aspuru-Guzik
Environment-assisted quantum walks in photosynthetic energy transfer, as demonstrated in the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex, show that quantum coherence and environmental interactions significantly enhance energy transfer efficiency. The study uses a quantum walk framework within the Lindblad formalism to model energy transfer in molecular systems interacting with a thermal bath. The FMO complex, a key photosynthetic energy transfer channel, exhibits high efficiency (up to 99%) due to the interplay between the free Hamiltonian and environmental fluctuations. The energy transfer efficiency (ETE) is analyzed as a function of temperature, reorganization energy, and quantum jumps. The results show that environment-assisted quantum walks lead to a substantial increase in ETE compared to purely unitary quantum walks. The study also explores the susceptibility of ETE to various processes, including phonon bath coupling, transfer to the acceptor, and dephasing. The findings suggest that quantum coherence and environmental interactions play a crucial role in the high efficiency of photosynthetic energy transfer. The approach provides a framework for understanding and engineering energy transfer in complex systems, with potential applications in quantum information and artificial photosystems.Environment-assisted quantum walks in photosynthetic energy transfer, as demonstrated in the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex, show that quantum coherence and environmental interactions significantly enhance energy transfer efficiency. The study uses a quantum walk framework within the Lindblad formalism to model energy transfer in molecular systems interacting with a thermal bath. The FMO complex, a key photosynthetic energy transfer channel, exhibits high efficiency (up to 99%) due to the interplay between the free Hamiltonian and environmental fluctuations. The energy transfer efficiency (ETE) is analyzed as a function of temperature, reorganization energy, and quantum jumps. The results show that environment-assisted quantum walks lead to a substantial increase in ETE compared to purely unitary quantum walks. The study also explores the susceptibility of ETE to various processes, including phonon bath coupling, transfer to the acceptor, and dephasing. The findings suggest that quantum coherence and environmental interactions play a crucial role in the high efficiency of photosynthetic energy transfer. The approach provides a framework for understanding and engineering energy transfer in complex systems, with potential applications in quantum information and artificial photosystems.
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Understanding Environment-assisted quantum walks in photosynthetic energy transfer.