title: Natural Regulation of Energy Flow in a Green Quantum Photocell.
abstract: Manipulating the flow of energy in nanoscale and molecular photonic devices is of both fundamental interest and central importance for applications in light energy harvesting optoelectronics. Under erratic solar irradiance conditions, unregulated power fluctuations in a light-harvesting photocell lead to inefficient energy storage in conventional solar cells and potentially fatal oxidative damage in photosynthesis. Here, we compare the theoretical minimum energy fluctuations in nanoscale quantum heat engine photocells that incorporate one or two photon-absorbing channels and show that fluctuations are naturally suppressed in the two-channel photocell. This intrinsic suppression acts as a passive regulation mechanism that enables the efficient conversion of varying incident solar power into a steady output for absorption over a broad range of the solar spectrum on Earth. Remarkably, absorption in the green portion of the spectrum provides no inherent regulatory benefit, indicating that green light should be rejected in a photocell whose primary role is the regulation of energy flow.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California , 900 University Avenue, Riverside, California 92521, United States.|Laboratory of Quantum Materials Optoelectronics, Materials Science and Engineering Building, Room 179, University of California , Riverside, California 92521, United States.
authors.forename: Trevor B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Arp
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California , 900 University Avenue, Riverside, California 92521, United States.|Center for Spins and Heat in Nanoscale Electronic Systems (SHINES), Materials Science and Engineering Building, Room 226, University of California , Riverside, California 92521, United States.
authors.forename: Yafis
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Barlas
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California , 900 University Avenue, Riverside, California 92521, United States.
authors.forename: Vivek
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Aji
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California , 900 University Avenue, Riverside, California 92521, United States.|Laboratory of Quantum Materials Optoelectronics, Materials Science and Engineering Building, Room 179, University of California , Riverside, California 92521, United States.|Center for Spins and Heat in Nanoscale Electronic Systems (SHINES), Materials Science and Engineering Building, Room 226, University of California , Riverside, California 92521, United States.
authors.forename: Nathaniel M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Gabor
keywords: Regulation; artificial photosynthesis; nanoscale optoelectronics; power fluctuations; quantum dots; quantum heat engine photocell