Electric field effects on fluorescence of the green fluorescent protein

External electric field effects on state energy and photoexcitation dynamics have been examined for a mutant of UV-excited green fluorescent protein (GFPuv5) in a PVA film. The electrofluorescence spectrum of GFPuv5 is reproduced by a linear combination between the fluorescence spectrum and its second derivative spectrum, indicating the field-induced fluorescence quenching and the difference in electric dipole moment between the fluorescent state and the ground state. The direct measurements of the field-induced change in fluorescence decay show that the field-induced quenching results from the field-induced increase in the rate of the non-radiative process from the fluorescent state.