All-polymer whispering gallery mode resonators for gas sensing.

Sensitivity of polymeric microdisks is evaluated for selected compounds in their vapor phase such as humidity, isopropanol, toluene, limonene, 1-butanol, and pentanoic acid (valeric acid). Among these compounds, pentanoic acid exhibits the highest sensitivity (23 pm/ppm) with a limit of detection estimated to be around 0.6 ppm. We are interested in the contribution of the geometry deformation due to polymer swelling on the sensitivity as it may be engineered to improve performance of gas sensing devices. Experimental observations show a trend where sensitivity to humidity increased with the ratio of the undercut over the radius of the microcavity.

Precision resonance tuning and design of SiN photonic crystal reflectors.

Photonic crystal reflector (PCR) membranes exhibit a resonantly enhanced normal-incidence reflectivity. Many applications require this resonance to occur at a specific wavelength, however, imposing geometrical tolerances that are not reliably achieved with standard nanolithography. Here we finely tune the resonant wavelength of a freestanding Si3N4 PCR membrane with iterative hydrofluoric acid etches, achieving a 57 nm thin crystal with a resonant wavelength 0.15 nm (0.04 linewidths) away from our target (1550 nm). This thin crystal exhibits a broader, shallower transmission dip than its simulated response to plane waves, and we identify two causes related to beam collimation. Finally, we present a series of simulations and general design considerations for realizing robust, high-reflectivity resonances.

Low-threshold lasing at 1975 nm in thulium-doped tellurite glass microspheres.

Thulium-doped (Tm-doped) tellurite glass microspheres are used as laser media. Emission lines at wavelengths near 1975 nm are observed. The onset of laser emission is achieved with 8.6 and 30 µW of coupled pump power and injected pump power, respectively, at a wavelength of 1554 nm. To the authors' knowledge, these are the lowest laser threshold values recorded for a Tm-doped tellurite glass microcavity. Intrinsic Q-factors above 10(6) for the undoped tellurite glass microspheres assert the quality of the fabrication processes. An optical intrinsic Q-factor comparison between Tm-doped tellurite and undoped tellurite microspheres shows that ion absorption is the dominant loss source at pump wavelengths. Lower lasing threshold powers and higher power conversion are observed at longer pump wavelengths in agreement with theoretical models.

Cascaded Raman lasing in packaged high quality As2S3 microspheres.

We report the observation of cascaded Raman lasing in high-Q As2S3microspheres. Cascaded stimulated Raman scattering emission is obtained up to the 5th order for a pump wavelength of 1557 nm and up to the 3rd order for a pump wavelength of 1880 nm. High-Q As2S3microspheres are used in a self-frequency locking laser setup without an external laser source. Threshold curves measurements are presented and follow the expected coupled mode theory behavior with a sub-mW threshold pump power.

Immobilized phage proteins for specific detection of staphylococci.

Rapid, specific detection of pathogenic bacteria remains a major challenge in infectious disease diagnostics. Bacteriophages can show genus- or even species-level specificity and have been developed for biosensing purposes, but the possibility of using individual phage proteins for detection has not been fully explored. This work exploits the ability of specific phage proteins, the endolysins LysK and Φ11, and the bacteriocin lysostaphin, fixed on silicon wafers to bind staphylococci. The proteins show activity against eight tested clinical isolates of S. aureus and to S. epidermidis, but no binding to Escherichia coli and limited binding to Micrococcus. Binding was quantified by clearing assays in solution and by functionalization of silicon wafers followed by light microscopy. Bacterial binding densities on functionalized surfaces were ~3 cells/100 µm(2). The small size of the proteins makes the system robust and easy to handle, and the principle is generalizable to many different biosensor platforms, including label-free systems such as optical microresonators.

Temperature Sensitivity Control of an Inkjet-Printed Optical Resonator on Pillar.

We report a whispering gallery mode resonator on a pillar using inkjet printing combined with traditional microfabrication techniques. This approach enables several different polymers on the same chip for sensing applications. However, polymers inherently exhibit sensitivity to multiple stimuli. To mitigate temperature sensitivity, careful selection of design parameters is crucial. By precisely tuning the undercut-to-radius ratio of the resonator, a linear dependence in temperature sensitivity ranging from -41.5 pm/°C to 23.4 pm/°C, with a zero-crossing point at 47.6% is achieved. Consequently, it is feasible to fabricate sensing devices based on undercut microdroplets with minimal temperature sensitivity. The lowest measured temperature sensitivity obtained was 5.9 pm/°C, for a resonator with an undercut-to-radius ratio of 53%.

Raman lasing in As2S3 high-Q whispering gallery mode resonators.

We report the first observation of a nonlinear process in a chalcogenide microresonator. Raman scattering and stimulated Raman scattering leading to laser oscillation is observed in microspheres made of As2S3. The coupled pump power threshold is as low as 13 µW using a pump wavelength of 1550 nm. The quality factor of the chalcogenide microresonator is also the highest ever reported with Q>7×10(7).

Immature and mature bone marrow-derived dendritic cells exhibit distinct intracellular mechanical properties.

Dendritic cells (DCs) patrol the organism at an immature stage to detect the presence of pathogens. Once activated, these mature DCs reach the lymph nodes to activate antigen-specific T lymphocytes and thus initiate an adaptative immune response to control the pathogen. The migration of both immature and mature DCs is a key process for their optimal function. DC migration requires transit through narrow constrictions that is allowed by their high local and global deformation capabilities. In addition to cytoplasmic changes, the nucleus mechanical properties also have a major impact for cellular migration and motility. Yet, nucleus intracellular mobility of dendritic cells or its variation upon maturation have not been investigated. Our study defines the biophysical phenotypic variations of dendritic cells upon maturation using interferometric deformability cytometry. This method characterizes different cellular mechanical properties, such as elongation and nucleus offset, by assessing the refractive index spatial distribution of shear-induced deformed cells. By using these parameters, our data suggest that in vitro bone marrow derived dendritic cell (BMDC) maturation induces cell stiffening and reduces nucleus mobility, allowing to distinguish immature and mature dendritic cells. Overall, our method provides insights on intracellular mechanical properties of two dendritic cell states.

Simultaneous measurement of quality factor and wavelength shift by phase shift microcavity ring down spectroscopy.

Optical resonant microcavities with ultra high quality factors are widely used for biosensing. Until now, the primary method of detection has been based upon tracking the resonant wavelength shift as a function of biodetection events. One of the sources of noise in all resonant-wavelength shift measurements is the noise due to intensity fluctuations of the laser source. An alternative approach is to track the change in the quality factor of the optical cavity by using phase shift cavity ring down spectroscopy, a technique which is insensitive to the intensity fluctuations of the laser source. Here, using biotinylated microtoroid resonant cavities, we show simultaneous measurement of the quality factor and the wavelength shift by using phase shift cavity ring down spectroscopy. These measurements were performed for disassociation phase of biotin-streptavidin reaction. We found that the disassociation curves are in good agreement with the previously published results. Hence, we demonstrate not only the application of phase shift cavity ring down spectroscopy to microcavities in the liquid phase but also simultaneous measurement of the quality factor and the wavelength shift for the microcavity biosensors in the application of kinetics measurements.

Intrinsic quality factor determination in whispering gallery mode microcavities using a single Stokes parameters measurement.

Determination of the intrinsic quality factor of a loaded whispering gallery mode microcavity can be important for many applications where the coupling conditions cannot be tuned. We propose a single-scan technique based on a Stokes parameters analysis to extract the intrinsic quality factor and therefore determine the coupling regime. We propose a simple model for this analysis and present experimental measurements, which are in very good agreement with the model.

Periodic and non-periodic frequency selection in an erbium doped fiber laser by silica microdisk optical cavity filters.

Integrated silica microdisk resonators can be used to create a variety of very high performance spectral filters. These filters can control the spectral emission of an erbium doped fiber laser. By modifying the number and sizes of the microdisks constituting these filters it is possible to produce single wavelength, periodic multi-frequency and non-periodic multi-wavelength fiber lasers. Channel spacing as low as 0.28 nm and non-periodic four wavelength lasers were demonstrated.

Tunable structures comprising two photonic crystal slabs--optical study in view of multi-analyte enhanced detection.

Using finite-difference time-domain method, we characterize the normal-incidence transmission properties of a two slab photonic crystal device in a view of its applications in fluorescence enhancement and multi-analyte detection. Individual slabs consist of a square or a triangular lattice of air holes embedded into a silicon nitride slab. The geometrical parameters are chosen so that the individual slabs operate in a guided resonance regime where strong reflectivity under the normal incidence angle is observed in a broad spectral range. When placed in the close proximity of each other, the two photonic crystal slab system exhibits a narrow Fabry-Perot type transmission peak corresponding to the excitation of a resonant mode in the cavity formed by the two slabs. We then study the effects of the size of the air gap between the two photonic crystal slabs on the spectral position and bandwidth of a resonance transmission peak. Finally, we investigate the electromagnetic energy distributions at the wavelength of a transmission resonance in the double slab photonic crystals. As a final result we demonstrate that this structure can provide electric field enhancement at the slab surface, which can be used for fluorescence enhancement.

On-chip refractive index cytometry for whole-cell deformability discrimination.

On-chip high-throughput phenotyping of single cells has gained a lot of interest recently due to the discrimination capability of label-free biomarkers such as whole-cell deformability and refractive index. Here we present on-chip refractive index cytometry (RIC) for whole-cell deformability at a high measurement rate. We have further exploited a previously published on-chip optical characterization method which enhances cellular discrimination through the refractive index measurement of single cells. The proposed on-chip RIC can simultaneously probe the cellular refractive index, effective volume and whole-cell deformability while reaching a measurement rate up to 5000 cells per second. Additionally, the relative position of the nucleus inside the cell is reflected by the asymmetry of the measured curve. This particular finding is confirmed by our numerical simulation model and emphasized by a modified cytoskeleton HL-60 cells model. Furthermore, the proposed device discriminated HL-60 derived myeloid cells such as neutrophils, basophils and promyelocytes, which are indistinguishable using flow cytometry. To our knowledge, this is the first integrated device to simultaneously characterize the cellular refractive index and whole-cell deformability, yielding enhanced discrimination of large myeloid cell populations.

Guided-mode resonance photonic crystal slab sensors based on bead monolayer geometry.

Using finite-difference time-domain method, we investigate photonic crystal slabs consisting of spherical voids or silica beads embedded into a dielectric slab as bio-chemical sensors. We study the dependence of the spectral position of guided-mode resonances on the refractive index of a slab material. The most sensitive design is based on voids filled with analyte. We also study the effects of the slab and analyte thicknesses on guided-mode resonance properties. We eventually demonstrate an aqueous analyte sensor with high sensitivity at visible wavelength as electro-magnetic energy distribution in some guided-mode resonances can be strongly localized in the analyte region.

Real-Time Detection of Staphylococcus Aureus Using Whispering Gallery Mode Optical Microdisks.

Whispering Gallery Mode (WGM) microresonators have recently been studied as a means to achieve real-time label-free detection of biological targets such as virus particles, specific DNA sequences, or proteins. Due to their high quality (Q) factors, WGM resonators can be highly sensitive. A biosensor also needs to be selective, requiring proper functionalization of its surface with the appropriate ligand that will attach the biomolecule of interest. In this paper, WGM microdisks are used as biosensors for detection of Staphylococcus aureus. The microdisks are functionalized with LysK, a phage protein specific for staphylococci at the genus level. A binding event on the surface shifts the resonance peak of the microdisk resonator towards longer wavelengths. This reactive shift can be used to estimate the surface density of bacteria that bind to the surface of the resonator. The limit of detection of a microdisk with a Q-factor around 104 is on the order of 5 pg/mL, corresponding to 20 cells. No binding of Escherichia coli to the resonators is seen, supporting the specificity of the functionalization scheme.

Facile biosynthesis, separation and conjugation of gold nanoparticles to doxorubicin.

Particle shape and size determine the physicochemical and optoelectronic properties of nanoscale materials, including optical absorption, fluorescence, and electric and magnetic moments. It is thus desirable to be able to synthesize and separate various particle shapes and sizes. Biosynthesis using microorganisms has emerged as a more ecologically friendly, simpler, and more reproducible alternative to chemical synthesis of metal and semiconductor nanoparticles, allowing the generation of rare forms such as triangles. Here we show that the plant pathogenic fungus Helminthosporum solani, when incubated with an aqueous solution of chloroaurate ions, produces a diverse mixture of extracellular gold nanocrystals in the size range from 2 to 70 nm. A plurality are polydisperse spheres, but a significant number are homogeneously sized rods, triangles, pentagons, pyramids, and stars. The particles can be separated according to their size and shape by using a sucrose density gradient in a tabletop microcentrifuge, a novel and facile approach to nanocrystal purification. Conjugation to biomolecules can be performed without further processing, as illustrated with the smallest fraction of particles which were conjugated to the anti-cancer drug doxorubicin (Dox) and taken up readily into HEK293 cells. The cytotoxicity of the conjugates was comparable to that of an equivalent concentration of Dox.

Photonic crystal slabs demonstrating strong broadband suppression of transmission in the presence of disorders.

We characterize the transmission spectra of out-of-plane, normal-incidence light of two-dimensional silicon photonic crystal slabs and observe excellent agreement between the measured data and finite-difference time-domain simulations over the 1050-1600-nm wavelength range. Crystals that are 340 nm thick and have holes of 330-nm radius on a square lattice of 998-nm pitch show 20-dB extinction in transmission from 1220 to 1255 nm. Increasing the hole radius to 450 nm broadens the extinction band further, and we obtain >85% extinction from 1310 to 1550 nm. Discrepancies between simulation and measurement are ascribed to disorder in the photonic lattice, which is measured through image processing on high-resolution scanning electron micrographs. Analysis of crystal imperfections indicates that they tend to average out narrowband spectral features, while having relatively small effects on broadband features.