CAREER: Fluorescence Resonant Energy Transfer in Opto-fluidic Ring Resonators for Ultrasensitive Biomolecule Detection

光流控环形谐振器(OFRR)是PI实验室最早发明的一种光子技术。OFRR将极高Q因数的光学腔(107)与微流体集成在一起，实现了高效的样品传输和通过流体的光控制。由于这些新颖的特性，OFRR在许多领域都有广泛的应用，包括生物/化学传感器、光子器件和基础物理。特别是在提出的研究中，Pi Wilo将OFRR研究扩展到荧光共振能量转移(FRET)。FRET已广泛应用于生物和化学传感器中。然而，超过Forster距离(2-10 nm)的极低的能量传递效率严重恶化了FRET的传感能力，尤其是对于大的生物分子。PI最近的研究以及其他小组早些时候进行的研究表明，光学腔可以通过远程腔辅助能量转移和非线性激光作用来显著提高FRET效率。这些特性可以被用来克服传统的基于FRET的生物传感的局限性。这项拟议研究的总体目标是对OFRR中的FRET过程进行基础研究，并利用功能强大的OFRR和FRET技术来开发一种甚至可以在单分子水平上操作的新型小型化和高灵敏度的光子生物传感系统。

Opto-fluidic ring resonator (OFRR) is a photonic technology originally invented in the PI's lab. The OFRR integrates the optical cavity of extremely high Q-factors (107) with microfluidics, enabling efficient sample delivery and control of light through fluids. Because of these novel characteristics, the OFRR has broad applications in many fields, including bio/chemical sensors, photonic devices, and fundamental physics. In the proposed research, in particular, the PI wilo expand the OFRR study into fluorescence resonant energy transfer (FRET). FRET has been extensively employed in biological and chemical sensors. However, extremely low energy transfer efficiency beyond the Forster distance (2-10 nm) has severely deteriorated the FRET sensing capability, especially for large biomolecules. The PI's recent studies, along with those conducted earlier by other groups, have shown that FRET efficiency can be drastically enhanced by an optical cavity through long-range cavity assisted energy transfer and nonlinear lasing action. These properties can be exploited to overcome the limitations of the traditional FRET-based biosensing. The overall aim of the proposed research is to conduct a fundamental investigation into FRET processes in the OFRR and to harness the powerful OFRR and FRET technologiesto develop a novel miniaturized and highly sensitive photonic biosensing system that can be operated at even the single molecule level.