Tunneling in Biological Systems

Tunneling in Biological Systems focuses on the low temperature electron transport that reveals a quantum-mechanical effect called “tunneling.” This book discusses the tunneling in physical systems; detection of molecular vibrations with electron tunneling; chemical-rate theory of small-polaron hopping; and experimental approaches to electronic coupling in metal ion redox systems. The Faraday rotation and photoconductivity of photosynthetic structures at microwave frequencies; dynamics of electron transport in macromolecules; and electron transfer reactions in cytochrome oxidase are also elaborated. This text likewise covers the kinetic evidence for electron tunneling in solution; specificity and control in biological systems; molecular tunneling in heme proteins; and ligand binding. This publication is valuable to students and researchers interested in the physics of biological and medical problems.