Photonic Characterisation of Indium Tin Oxide as a Function of Deposition Conditions.

Indium tin oxide (ITO) has recently gained prominence as a photonic nanomaterial, for example, in modulators, tuneable metasurfaces and for epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) photonics. The optical properties of ITO are typically described by the Drude model and are strongly dependent on the deposition conditions. In the current literature, studies often make several assumptions to connect the optically measured material parameters to the electrical properties of ITO, which are not always clear, nor do they necessarily apply. Here, we present a comprehensive study of the structural, electrical, and optical properties of ITO and showed how they relate to the deposition conditions. We use guided mode resonances to determine the dispersion curves of the deposited material and relate these to structural and electrical measurements to extract all relevant material parameters. We demonstrate how the carrier density, mobility, plasma frequency, electron effective mass, and collision frequency vary as a function of deposition conditions, and that the high-frequency permittivity (쵰) can vary significantly from the value of 쵰 = 3.9 that many papers simply assume to be a constant. The depth of analysis we demonstrate allows the findings to be easily extrapolated to the photonic characterisation of other transparent conducting oxides (TCOs), whilst providing a much-needed reference for the research area.

Dielectric nanohole array metasurface for high-resolution near-field sensing and imaging.

Dielectric metasurfaces support resonances that are widely explored both for far-field wavefront shaping and for near-field sensing and imaging. Their design explores the interplay between localised and extended resonances, with a typical trade-off between Q-factor and light localisation; high Q-factors are desirable for refractive index sensing while localisation is desirable for imaging resolution. Here, we show that a dielectric metasurface consisting of a nanohole array in amorphous silicon provides a favourable trade-off between these requirements. We have designed and realised the metasurface to support two optical modes both with sharp Fano resonances that exhibit relatively high Q-factors and strong spatial confinement, thereby concurrently optimizing the device for both imaging and biochemical sensing. For the sensing application, we demonstrate a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 1 pg/ml for Immunoglobulin G (IgG); for resonant imaging, we demonstrate a spatial resolution below 1 µm and clearly resolve individual E. coli bacteria. The combined low LOD and high spatial resolution opens new opportunities for extending cellular studies into the realm of microbiology, e.g. for studying antimicrobial susceptibility.

Attachment and antibiotic response of early-stage biofilms studied using resonant hyperspectral imaging.

Many bacterial species readily develop biofilms that act as a protective matrix against external challenge, e.g., from antimicrobial treatment. Therefore, biofilms are often responsible for persistent and recurring infections. Established methods for studying biofilms are either destructive or focus on the biofilm's surface. A non-destructive method that is sensitive to the underside of the biofilm is highly desirable, as it allows studying the penetration of antibiotics through the film. Here, we demonstrate that the high surface sensitivity of resonant hyperspectral imaging provides this capability. The method allows us to monitor the early stages of Escherichia coli biofilm formation, cell attachment and microcolony formation, in-situ and in real-time. We study the response of the biofilm to a number of different antibiotics and verify our observations using confocal microscopy. Based on this ability to closely monitor the surface-bound cells, resonant hyperspectral imaging gives new insights into the antimicrobial resistance of biofilms.

Ly6a Differential Expression in Blood-Brain Barrier Is Responsible for Strain Specific Central Nervous System Transduction Profile of AAV-PHP.B.

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy for neurological diseases was revolutionized by the discovery that AAV9 crosses the blood-brain barrier (BBB) after systemic administration. Transformative results have been documented in various inherited diseases, but overall neuronal transduction efficiency is relatively low. The recent development of AAV-PHP.B with ∼60-fold higher efficiency than AAV9 in transducing the adult mouse brain was the major first step toward acquiring the ability to deliver genes to the majority of cells in the central nervous system (CNS). However, little is known about the mechanism utilized by AAV to cross the BBB, and how it may diverge across species. In this study, we show that AAV-PHP.B is ineffective for systemic CNS gene transfer in the inbred strains BALB/cJ, BALB/cByJ, A/J, NOD/ShiLtJ, NZO/HILtJ, C3H/HeJ, and CBA/J mice, but it is highly potent in C57BL/6J, FVB/NJ, DBA/2J, 129S1/SvImJ, and AKR/J mice and also the outbred strain CD-1. We used the power of classical genetics to uncover the molecular mechanisms AAV-PHP.B engages to transduce CNS at high efficiency, and by quantitative trait locus mapping we identify a 6 Mb region in chromosome 15 with an logarithm of the odds (LOD) score ∼20, including single nucleotide polymorphisms in the coding region of 9 different genes. Comparison of the publicly available data on the genome sequence of 16 different mouse strains, combined with RNA-seq data analysis of brain microcapillary endothelia, led us to conclude that the expression level of Ly6a is likely the determining factor for differential efficacy of AAV-PHP.B in transducing the CNS across different mouse strains.

Chirped guided-mode resonance biosensor.

Advanced biomedical diagnostic technologies fulfill an important role in improving health and well-being in society. A large number of excellent technologies have already been introduced and have given rise to the "lab-on-a-chip" paradigm. Most of these technologies, however, require additional instrumentation for interfacing and readout, so they are often confined to the laboratory and are not suitable for use in the field or in wider clinical practice. Other technologies require a light coupling element, such as a grating coupler or a fiber coupler, which complicates packaging. Here, we introduce a novel biosensor based on a chirped guided-mode resonant grating. The chirped grating combines the sensing function with the readout function by translating spectral information into spatial information that is easily read out with a simple CMOS camera. We demonstrate a refractive index sensitivity of 137 nm/RIU and an extrapolated limit of detection of 267 pM for the specific binding of an immunoglobulin G antibody. The chirped guided-mode resonance approach introduces a new degree of freedom for sensing biomedical information that combines high sensitivity with autonomous operation. We estimate that the cost of components is U.S. $10 or less when mass manufactured, so the technology has the potential to truly transform point-of-care applications.