Electron migration in hydrated biopolymers following pulsed irradiation at low temperatures

Charge migration in biopolymer-water mixtures and the effect of water concentration on the charge migration is investigated by measuring the electrical conductivity and the light emission with the pulse radiolysis technique. A preliminary account of the microwave conductivity observed in hydrated DNA and collagen at low temperature after pulsed irradiation is given. The results show that when hydrated DNA or collagen are irradiated at low temperatures, conductivity transients with microsecond lifetime are observed. It is tentatively concluded that these transients are due to the highly mobile dry electron. The effect of water concentration on mobility, lifetime and migration distance of the electron is discussed. The effect of additives to the hydrated systems on the behaviour of the electron is described. It is shown that the observed effects of the additives confirm the earlier conclusions that the dry electron is the species responsible for the radiation induced conductivity. The water concentration in the DNA- and collagen-systems could be varied only between zero and approximately fifty percent, due to inhomogeneities which occur at higher water concentrations. Experiments on gelatin, a biopolymer which forms homogeneous samples with levels of hydration varying from almost zero to 100% water (ice) are described. Both the radiation induced and the dark microwave conductivity have been studied as a function of water content. Preliminary results of a study of the light emission from pulse irradiated DNA-water mixtures are reported in an attempt to establish a relation between the observed electron migration and the formation of excited states via charge neutralization. (Auth.)