Ms Sarah Morgan

My research focuses on the theory of open quantum dynamics in nanoscale systems. Recently, experimental evidence has shown that quantum mechanical effects can be observed in photosynthetic systems, perhaps most notably in 2D spectroscopy experiments. This observation is surprising, given that these systems function in noisy environments at room temperature, where quantum effects are normally considered to be negligible. My work focuses on the initial, extremely efficient, energy transfer stages of photosynthesis and on how quantum mechanical phenomena can be sustained in these processes. Currently I am working on simulating 2D spectroscopy experiments in order to understand how different mechanisms might be observed in them. Ultimately, understanding how photosynthetic organisms use sunlight to separate charges could provide valuable insights into how to improve artificial light-harvesting devices.