Gold Nanoshell Effect on Light-Harvesting in LH2 Complexes from Photosynthetic Bacteria

Abstract

The paper presents results of a theoretical study of the way a small gold nanoshell affects the efficiency of photosynthesis in the peripheral light-harvesting complex LH2 from photosynthetic bacteria. The total effect of the nanoshell is the interplay of the enhancement of the light absorption due to the strong coupling of excitons on the LH2 ring with the surface plasmon modes and the additional quenching of the excitations introduced by the proximity of the metal. The range of parameters for which a gold nanoshell enhances the total efficiency of the light harvestings has been determined.