During the past two decades, two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy (2DES) and related techniques have emerged as a potent experimental toolset to study the ultrafast elementary steps of photosynthesis. Apart from the highly engaging albeit controversial analysis of the role of quantum coherences in the photosynthetic processes, 2DES has been applied to resolve the dynamics and pathways of energy and electron transport in various light-harvesting antenna systems and reaction centres, providing unsurpassed level of detail. In this paper we discuss the main technical approaches and their applicability for solving specific problems in photosynthesis. We then recount applications of 2DES to study the exciton dynamics in plant and photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes, especially light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) and the fucoxanthin-chlorophyll proteins of diatoms, with emphasis on the types of unique information about such systems that 2DES is capable to deliver. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Light harvesting, edited by Dr. Roberta Croce.

中文翻译：

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二维电子光谱对植物光收集复合物中能量转移的机理和动力学的见解。

在过去的二十年中，二维电子光谱（2DES）和相关技术已经成为研究光合作用的超快基本步骤的有效实验工具集。除了对量子相干在光合作用过程中的作用进行有争议的分析外，2DES还用于解决各种光收集天线系统和反应中心中能量和电子传输的动力学和途径，提供了无与伦比的细节水平。在本文中，我们讨论了解决光合作用中特定问题的主要技术方法及其适用性。然后，我们回顾2DES的应用，以研究植物和光合光捕获复合物中的激子动力学，尤其是光捕获复合物II（LHCII）和硅藻的岩藻黄质叶绿素蛋白，重点是2DES能够提供的有关此类系统的独特信息的类型。本文是Roberta Croce博士编辑的《光的收获》特刊的一部分。