QuBIC: Electromagnetic and Informational Processes in Biomolecular Polymers

Texas A&M Research Foundation, College Station TX

Investigators

Abstract

EIA-0218595 Dimitri V. Nanopoulos Texas A&M Research Foundation Electromagnetic and informational processes in biomolecular polymers In this project the electric dipole moment and quantum properties of tubulin, microtubules (MTs), microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) and cytoskeletal networks immobilized on thin metal films utilizing surface plasmon resonance and femtosecond laser pulses are being studied. The goal is to understand the electrical and conjectured quantum properties of the cytoskeleton and determine whether biomolecular polymers and specifically tubulin can be used as bits or qubits in the protein-based devices such as logic gates, nanowires and memory registers in the biological and quantum computers of the future. Measurements of the electric dipole moment of tubulin and its dynamics in polymerized and free tubulin, investigate the formation and propagation of the predicted kink-solitonic electric dipole moment flip waves and monitor the polymerization and dynamics of MT-MAP networks under different conditions are being measured. In addition, this research is ideally suited to test MT-based 'quantum brain' and 'quantum neuron' models predicting such phenomena as large-scale neuronal quantum coherence and teleportation of dipole quanta.