Resonance energy transfer: Beyond the limits

TitleResonance energy transfer: Beyond the limits
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsAndrews, DL, Curutchet C, Scholes GD
JournalLaser & Photonics Reviews
Volume5
Issue1
Pagination114 - 123
Date Published2011
ISBN Number1863-8880
Keywordsab-initio, antenna system, conjugated polymers, Dexter, electron-transfer, energy pooling, energy transfer, excitation transfer, forster, forster theory, fret, light-harvesting, molecular wire approach, photon up-conversion, photosynthesis, quantum-electrodynamic theory, rate expressions, sensors, upconversion
AbstractIn pursuit of a better understanding of how electronic excitation migrates within complex structures, the concept of resonance energy transfer is being extended and deployed in a wide range of applications. Utilizing knowledge of the quantum interactions that operate in natural photosynthetic systems, wide-ranging molecular and solid-state materials are explored in the cause of more efficient solar energy harvesting, while advances in theory are paving the way for the development and application of fundamentally new mechanisms. In this review, an introduction to the underlying processes that cause singlet-singlet and triplet-triplet energy transfer leads into a discussion of how a new conception of these fundamental processes has emerged over recent years. Illustrative examples relevant to laser science and photonics are described, including photosynthetic light-harvesting, light-activated sensors, processes of cooperative and accretive energy pooling and quantum cutting in rare earth-doped crystals, and incoherent triplet-triplet energy upconversion in molecular solutions.