A ring of protein and pigments, half synthetic and half
natural, can be used to quickly prototype light-harvesting antennas that absorb
more sunlight than fully natural ones
In diagrams it looks like a confection of self-curling
ribbon with bits of bling hung off the ribbon here and there. In fact it is a
carefully designed ring of proteins with attached pigments that self-assembles
into a structure that soaks up sunlight.
The scientists who made it call it a testbed, or platform
for rapid prototyping of light-harvesting antennas–structures found in plants
and photosynthesizing bacteria–that take the first step in converting sunlight
into usable energy. The antennas consist of protein scaffolding that holds
pigment molecules in ideal positions to capture and transfer the sun’s energy.
The number and variety of the pigment molecules determines how much of the
sun’s energy the antennas can grab and dump into an energy trap.