Grabbing Video Sequences Using Protein-Based Artificial Retina

Bacteriorhodopsin thin film matrix has been studied for real-tune acquisition of video. The proton pumping property of bacteriorhodopsin is reversible, and the relaxation time back to the basic state is approximately 10 ms at ambient temperature. Photostimulation can be used to return bacteriorhodopsin to the basic state in 50 mus. The measurements show that the photocycle becomes slower in polyvinylalcohol than in solution, thus the achievable acquisition frequency is limited by the composition of the thin film.