Conference Agenda

Joining the rich photo-physics of organic materials with the exquisite sensitivity of optical resonances to geometry and refractive index enables a plethora of devices with unusual and exciting properties. Examples from my team include flat microcavity sensors for interference-based detection of the mechanical forces exerted by cells, microlasers for real time sensing of cellular activity and long-term cell tracking, as well as the development of implants with extreme form factors that support optical stimulation of thousands of neurons deep in the brain with unprecedented spatial control. Very recently, by driving the interaction between excited states in organic materials and resonances in thin optical cavities into the strong coupling regime, we unlocked new tuning parameters which may enable a new generation of thin film optical filters with angle-independent characteristics as is required for more compact fluorescence-based sensing devices.

This study details the integration of optical fiber-based and electrochemical biosensors within a specially designed microfluidic system. It will present the results of a bioassay using an aptamer specific to tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-) on the hybrid opto-electrochemical system.

We demonstrate single-molecule detection of DNA using a low-cost,

miniaturized microscopy platform. Despite significant reductions in size and

cost, our system achieves performance comparable to a research-grade TIRF

microscope, with a limit of detection of 10 pM. Finally, we propose a path

toward wearable single-molecule sensors through integration with photonic cir-

cuits

Optical emitters in two-dimensional (2D) materials are emerging as ultrabright and robust optical probes for fluorescence based sensing of single molecules in physiological conditions. Controlling their spatial and spectral properties, however, remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate that thermally induced wrinkles in exfoliated hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) flakes act as nanoscale channels capable of localizing both optical emitters and biomolecules. Wrinkle formation is governed by the thermal expansion mismatch between hBN and the substrate, generating strain gradients that activate visible-range emitters. We perform structural and optical characterization of the wrinkles using atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and single-molecule fluorescence imaging. Our results show that hBN wrinkles form optically active nanochannels that can be filled with liquid, and provide nanofluidic confinements suited for single-molecule transport and detection. These represent a promising platform for on-chip optofluidic sensing with single-molecule resolution.

The advancement of Genetically Encoded Voltage Indicators (GEVIs) has enabled real-time monitoring of voltage dynamics at subcellular resolution. Among various GEVI platforms, microbial rhodopsin-based GEVIs are particularly promising due to their superior sensitivity and spatiotemporal resolution. These indicators have the potential to enhance our understanding of complex cellular events such as synaptic transmission and neuronal plasticity. We present a set of nanofabricated tools to aid achievement of this goal. We employ Laser-Assisted 3D-Printed Nanostructured Arrays to guide neuronal development, optimizing network architecture. In parallel, we explore plasmonic enhancement strategies to boost the kinetics and fluorescence brightness of GEVIs. These top dop-down approaches dovetail with bottom-up genetic engineering of GEVI structure to optimize the experimental design for the investigation of subcellular voltage dynamics at various scales.