Exploring vegetation photosynthetic light-use efficiency using hyperspectral data

Abstract

ABSTRACT Photosynthetic light-use efficiency (LUE) is an important indicator of plant photosynthesis, but assessment by remote sensing needs to be further explored. In principle, chlorophyll fluorescence combined with heat dissipation is an expression of the balance between light harvesting (absorption) and light utilization in the photosynthetic process. The aim of the present study was to examin e the above principles using solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (ChlF) and photochemical reflectance index (PRI), which is sensitive to dynamic changes in the xanthophyll cycle. LUE-ChlF models were developed for ChlF at 688 nm (R 2 = 0.72) and 760 nm (R 2 = 0.59) based on the experiment data for winter wheat, which were also validated by three independent experiments, and the validation results showed that the LUE-ChlF relation was weakened, possibly by different species, canopy density and environmental conditions. Furthermore, the significant negative relation between non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and PRI was confirmed. However, the PRI-LUE relation was evidently weak ened by the canopy and environmental conditions. The PRI difference ( ' PRI) from the minimum reference PRI around noontime could grea tly eliminate the interference factors. The LUE- ' PRI model was developed based on the experiment data for winter wheat (with an R