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Dissipation Pathways in a Photosynthetic Complex.

Ignacio Gustin1, Chang Woo Kim2,3, Ignacio Franco1,4,5

  • 1Department of Chemistry, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, United States.

The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters
|December 12, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Energy dissipation in photosynthesis is guided by low-frequency vibrational modes within the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex. These modes, near resonance with pigment energy gaps, facilitate efficient energy transfer and can even involve borrowing energy from the environment.

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Area of Science:

  • * Molecular biophysics and quantum dynamics.
  • * Photosynthesis and light-harvesting complexes.
  • * Computational chemistry and condensed matter physics.

Background:

  • * Understanding molecular energy flow is key to chemical reactions, material properties, and photosynthesis.
  • * Elucidating specific molecular pathways for energy transfer in complex systems is challenging.
  • * The Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex mediates energy transfer from light-harvesting chlorosomes to the photosynthetic reaction center in green sulfur bacteria.

Purpose of the Study:

  • * To investigate how photon excitation energy is dissipated within the FMO complex.
  • * To isolate the contributions of protein and pigment vibrational modes to energy dynamics.
  • * To identify specific vibrational modes responsible for energy dissipation pathways.

Main Methods:

  • * Developed an efficient computational implementation of a theory for dissipation pathways in open quantum systems.
  • * Utilized second-order perturbation theory in electronic couplings.
  • * Employed a state-of-the-art FMO model with structured, chromophore-specific spectral densities.

Main Results:

  • * Energy dissipation is dominated by low-frequency vibrational modes (<800 cm-1) near resonance with pigment electronic state energy gaps.
  • * In-plane breathing modes (∼200 cm-1) of bacteriochlorophylls are identified as crucial for dissipation.
  • * Higher-frequency intramolecular vibrations (>800 cm-1) do not contribute to dissipation.
  • * The FMO complex transiently borrows energy from the environment to dissipate excess photonic energy.

Conclusions:

  • * Low-frequency vibrational modes play a critical role in directing energy dissipation in the FMO complex.
  • * Energy transfer dynamics involve a complex exchange with the thermal environment, not strictly unidirectional.
  • * Findings can inform the design of artificial light-harvesting devices and chemical/quantum control systems.