Researchers captured how a molecule and its surrounding water reorganize together during a rapid energy-transfer reaction that plays a key role in nature.

A chemical process central to photosynthesis, metabolism, and other forms of energy conversion has now been captured in unusual detail, revealing how a molecule and the water around it change together as a proton and electron are transferred.

Using two complementary ultrafast X-ray techniques, researchers tracked changes inside a light-activated molecule while observing how the surrounding network of water molecules reorganized. Combined with advanced computer simulations, the measurements showed how gaining a proton reshaped the molecule’s electronic structure at specific sites while altering its surrounding environment.