Using coherence to enhance function in chemical and biophysical systems

Gregory D. Scholes, Graham R. Fleming, Lin X. Chen, Alán Aspuru-Guzik, Andreas Buchleitner, David F. Coker, Gregory S. Engel, Rienk Van Grondelle, Akihito Ishizaki, David M. Jonas, Jeff S. Lundeen, James K. McCusker, Shaul Mukamel, Jennifer P. Ogilvie, Alexandra Olaya-Castro, Mark A. Ratner, Frank C. Spano, K. Birgitta Whaley, Xiaoyang Zhu

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

510 Scopus citations

Abstract

Coherence phenomena arise from interference, or the addition, of wave-like amplitudes with fixed phase differences. Although coherence has been shown to yield transformative ways for improving function, advances have been confined to pristine matter and coherence was considered fragile. However, recent evidence of coherence in chemical and biological systems suggests that the phenomena are robust and can survive in the face of disorder and noise. Here we survey the state of recent discoveries, present viewpoints that suggest that coherence can be used in complex chemical systems, and discuss the role of coherence as a design element in realizing function.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)647-656
Number of pages10
JournalNature
Volume543
Issue number7647
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 29 2017

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General

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