Sarah Morgan

Research

My research focuses on the theory of open quantum dynamics in nanoscale systems. Recently, experimental evidence has shown that quantum mechanical effects can be observed in photosynthetic systems, most notably in 2D optical spectroscopy. This observation is surprising, given that these systems function in noisy environments at room temperature, where quantum effects are normally considered to be negligible. I am interested in the initial, extremely efficient, energy transfer stages of photosynthesis and on how quantum mechanical phenomena can be sustained in these processes. Ultimately, understanding how photosynthetic organisms use sunlight to separate charges could provide valuable insights into how to improve artificial light-harvesting devices.

In order to reach this level of understanding, I am working on simulating 2D spectroscopy experiments to show how different physical mechanisms might be observed in them. 2D optical spectroscopy has the potential to give an unprecedented level of insight into the ultrafast electronic and vibrational dynamics of a range of molecular and condensed-matter systems, however separating out this information is non-trivial. I am particularly interested in the ability of 2D spectroscopy to resolve optically dark states, for example charge-transfer and charge separated states in the case of photosynthetic light reactions or organic photovoltaic devices.