title: Ultrafast carotenoid band shifts correlated with ChlZ excited states in the photosystem II reaction center: are the carotenoids involved in energy transfer?
abstract: We show a correlation between the electronic excitation of the peripheral chlorophylls (Chls(Z)) of the photosystem II reaction center and a shift of the S(2) absorption bands of β-carotene, and suggest that the carotenoids may enhance the excitation energy transfer rate from these chlorophylls to the central cofactors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. eli@few.vu.nl
authors.forename: Elisabet
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Romero
authors.forename: Ivo H M
authors.initials: IH
authors.lastname: van Stokkum
authors.forename: Jan P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Dekker
authors.forename: Rienk
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: van Grondelle