The molecules in the rods and cones in the eye are tuned to absorb photons of particular energies. The retinal molecule, like many molecules, is a long chain. Electrons can freely move along one stretch of the chain but are reflected at the ends, thus behaving like a particle in a one-dimensional box. The absorption of a photon lifts an electron from the ground state into the first excited state. Do the molecules in a red cone (which are tuned to absorb red light) or the molecules in a blue cone (tuned to absorb blue light) have a longer “box”?

The molecules in the rods and cones in the eye are tuned to absorb photons of particular energies. The retinal molecule, like many molecules, is a long chain. Electrons can freely move along one stretch of the chain but are reflected at the ends, thus behaving like a particle in a one-dimensional box. The absorption of a photon lifts an electron from the ground state into the first excited state. Do the molecules in a red cone (which are tuned to absorb red light) or the molecules in a blue cone (tuned to absorb blue light) have a longer “box”?