Redfield Theory Unifies Coherence and Dissipation in Photosynthetic Exciton Transport — E8 Intelligence Research

FINDING: Redfield theory formalizes photosynthetic exciton transport as a time-local Markovian master equation where the dephasing tensor (real part) and coherent coupling (imaginary part) of the same bath correlation function jointly govern transfer efficiency — coherence and dissipation are not opposed but co-derived from one spectral density. MATH: - Frenkel exciton Hamiltonian: H = Σ_n ε_n |n⟩⟨n| + Σn≠m Jₙₘ |n⟩⟨m| - Redfield master equation: dρ/dt = -i[H, ρ] + Σₙₘ Rₙₘ ρ (time-local, Markovian) - Redfield tensor: Rnm,kl = Γlm,kn + Γ*kn,lm - δₗₘ Σ_p Γnp,pk - δₖₙ Σ_p Γ*kp,pl - Bath correlation: Γnm,kl = ∫₀^∞ dt Cnm,kl(t) e^{-iωₖₗt}, with C(t) = ⟨B(t)B(0)⟩ - Key structural fact: Re[Γ] = dephasing/relaxation rates; Im[Γ] = Lamb shift (coherent energy renormalization). Both derive from the SAME spectral density J(ω). - Energy transfer efficiency η ≈ 1 observed in natural complexes (near-unity, per arXiv:1801.09475). CONNECTION: No direct 0.618 Author: Andrew Stewart Caldin, Independent Researcher, UK. Part of the E8 Intelligence Research series. Platform: e8intelligence.com