People have been trying for decades to understand quantum mechanics, the bizarre theory that explains, among other things, how stars work.

But according to a growing body of research, algae called cryptophytes tamed it billions of years ago to harness sunlight for energy, through photosynthesis.

Quantum mechanics states that on the subatomic scale, the location and velocity of matter cannot both be precisely described. Particles can be in two places at the same time, their positions described by probabilities. They can "tunnel" through barriers, a feat that in the macroscopic world would be called "teleportation."

These bizarre effects enable the process of photosynthesis to capture light energy far more effectively than would otherwise be the case, according to two new research papers. One was published last week in the journal Nature; the other was in the January issue of The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters.

Cryptophytes capture solar energy with structures called "antenna proteins." The energy is transferred to other molecules, where it is used to produce sugars and other necessary chemicals from carbon dioxide. This transfer can take place over several molecular pathways leading from point of capture to where it is used.

The scientists studied the energy transfer by stimulating the antenna proteins with light from a femtosecond laser. These lasers produce pulses measured in femtoseconds. A femtosecond is one millionth of a billionth of a second.

The quantum function allows the energy to exist in a state of "superposition," or "quantum coherence," in which it has no definite location, wrote Greg Scholes of the University of Toronto, an author of both papers.

Superposition is the same phenomenon described in the quantum mechanics thought experiment called "Schrodinger's cat," in which a cat theoretically can be alive and dead at the same time. This superposition exists in photosynthesis for just hundreds of femtoseconds.

However brief, the superposition exists for several times longer than originally believed possible. The process transfers energy across a distance of about 20 to 100 nanometers, or billions of a meter, with close to 100 percent efficiency, Scholes wrote in the Journal of Physical Chemistry article.

"The energy can thereby flow efficiently by ---- counter-intuitively ---- traversing several alternative paths through the antenna proteins simultaneously," Scholes said in a statement announcing the Nature study.

By contrast, the most efficient photovoltaic panels now on the market convert less than 50 percent of light energy into electrical energy. Many have less than 20 percent efficiency.

Scholes' University of Toronto colleagues in the Nature article include Elisabetta Collini, Cathy Y. Wong and Paul Brumer. Other team members include Paul Curmi and Krystyna Wilk of the University of New South Wales in Australia.

The research was funded with support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, in part by a Steacie Fellowship awarded to Scholes.

Call staff writer Bradley J. Fikes at 760-739-6641. Read his blogs at bizblogs.nctimes.com.