Novel experiments in the education of plant fluorescence

Lenk, Sándor (2025) Novel experiments in the education of plant fluorescence. In: 2025 IEEE Conference on Education and Training in Optics and Photonics (ETOP). IEEE, Piscataway (NJ), No.-11030622. ISBN 9798331543013

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Abstract

The paper describes a laboratory practice designed to draw attention of graduate physics students to the field of plant fluorescence. The laboratory exercise begins with a low-cost demonstration experiment in which leaves, after approximately 20 minutes of dark adaptation, are illuminated with blue light. Students observe and document the transient changes in fluorescence emission of the fluorophore Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) through their cell phone cameras. Later, the temporal variation of the fluorescence signal is also measured using a spectrophotometer, with both blue and ultraviolet (UV) excitations. Under UV excitation, the fluorescence emission from the blue-green fluorescing components of the epidermis is also detected. To connect the experiment to current research, the practice further includes demonstrations of fluorescence induction kinetics and fluorescence lifetime measurements – both used extensively by plant researchers.

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