Multiparametric Optical Microbe Sensing with Engineered Photonic-Plasmonic Nanostructures

ReinhardCBET-1159552纳米制品组件产生不同于孤立粒子的新特性，因此为在纳米尺度上创造新功能提供了巨大的机会。这一提议试图利用这样一个事实，即定义的金纳米颗粒阵列具有可工程设计的等离子激元共振，其空间和频率分布可以通过阵列的形态来控制。由于贵金属纳米颗粒准确的等离子体共振波长取决于环境的折射率，因此纳米贵金属表面是色度传感器。非周期金属纳米结构支持结构颜色模式，这使得基于空间相关成像的全新传感方法成为可能。此外，由纳米粒子簇组装而成的纳米结构表面可以有效地局部化入射电磁场并产生高电场增强。因此，纳米粒子簇阵列也是表面增强拉曼光谱的极佳衬底。该方案旨在结合纳米结构表面的光子和等离子体特性的优势，开发多参数响应器，通过对弹性和非弹性光散射过程的联合分析，实现增强的光学微生物检测和识别性能。智能优点本项目的研究将开发一种新的多参数光学微生物传感器，由于两个后续的传感阶段，该传感器可以实时高保真地识别和检测广泛的微生物(病毒、细菌、孢子)。第一阶段的特异性将通过传感器表面的抗体功能化来实现。微生物与这些抗体的结合将通过弹性散射光中的色度变化来检测。在第二个分析步骤中，对弹性散射光进行分析以获得微生物表面的振动SERS光谱。这一光谱作为微生物的指纹，并在与多变量数据分析和适当的库光谱相结合时能够进行识别。我们预计，基于SERS的鉴定方法将使微生物能够在菌株水平上进行分类。与传统的光学生物传感器相比，提出的两个后续识别阶段的方法实现了识别可靠性的显著提高。由于SERS允许在单细胞水平上识别生物体，所提出的多参数传感器可能为对真实世界的光学分析铺平道路。总是含有复杂的微生物混合物的样本。除了这些重要的传感进展外，这项提案中的研究还将提高目前设计具有明确光学响应的光子-等离子体贵金属结构的能力。广泛影响可靠和快速的微生物检测在关键传感领域具有重要意义，如环境监测、食品质量控制和国土安全。提出的传感器可以使光学微生物检测更快和更可靠，从而可能影响上述所有传感区域。除了概述的科学影响外，这项研究还包括明确的教育和推广部分。该项目将为高中生、本科生和研究生提供参与合作研究和教育计划的机会。它将构成至少两篇博士论文的基础。在与实验室研究的协同作用下，这项提议将使一个实质性的推广计划成为可能。首席调查员(PI)每年组织一次NanoCamp，面向来自当地市中心高中的学生，PI和Co-PI都赞助本科生和感兴趣的高中生在这项跨学科的研究工作中获得实践研究经验。这些外展活动将有助于激发初级研究人员和高中生对生物传感和一般科学技术领域的热情。

ReinhardCBET-1159552Nanoparticle assemblies generate new properties that are different from those of the isolated particles and, therefore, offer tremendous opportunities for creating new capabilities on the nanoscale. This proposal seeks to take advantage of the fact that defined arrays of gold nanoparticles have engineerable plasmon resonances whose spatial and frequency distribution can be controlled through the morphology of the array. Since the exact plasmon resonance wavelength of a noble metal nanoparticles depend on the refractive index of the environment, nanostructured noble metal surfaces are colorimetric sensors. Aperiodic metal nanostructures sustain structural color patterns which enable entirely new sensing approaches based on spatial correlation imaging. In addition, nanostructured surfaces assembled from nanoparticle clusters as building blocks can efficiently localize incident electromagnetic fields and generate high E-field enhancements. Consequently, nanoparticle cluster arrays are also superb substrates for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy. This proposal seeks to combine the advantageousphotonic and plasmonic properties of nanostructured surfaces to develop multiparametric responders that achieve enhanced optical microbe detection and identification performance through combined analysis of elastic and inelastic light scattering processes.Intellectual MeritsThe research in this project will develop a new class of multiparametric optical microbe sensors, that can identify and detect a broad range of microbes (viruses, bacteria, spores) with high fidelity due to two subsequent sensing stages in real time. A first stage of specificity will be achieved through antibody functionalization of the sensor surface. Binding of microbes to these antibodies will be detected through a colorimetric shift in the elastically scattered light. In the second analysis step in elastically scattered light is analyzed to obtain a vibrational SERS spectrum of the microbe surface. This spectrum serves as a fingerprint of the microbe and enables its identification when combined with multivariate data analysis and appropriate library spectra. We anticipate that the SERS based identification approach will enable microbe classifications on the strain level. The proposed approach of two subsequent identification stages achieves a significant improvement in the identification reliability over conventional optical biosensors. Because SERS allows an identification of organisms on the single cell level, the proposed multiparametric sensors could pave the way to an optical analysis of ?real world? samples that always contain a complex mixture of microbes. Besides these important sensing advances, the research in this proposal will also improve current capabilities to engineer photonic-plasmonic noble metal structures with defined optical responses.Broader ImpactReliable and rapid microbe detection is relevant in critical sensing areas such as environmental monitoring, food quality control, and homeland security. The proposed sensor could make optical microbe detection faster and more reliable and could thus impact all of the above sensing areas. In addition to the outlined scientific impacts, the research has clear educational and outreach components. The project will offer high school, undergraduate, and graduate students the opportunity to participate in a collaborative research and education program. It will form the basis for at least two PhD theses. In synergy with the laboratory research, this proposal will enable a substantial outreach program. The Principal Investigator (PI) organizes an annual NanoCamp for students from local inner city high schools, and both PI and Co-PI sponsor undergraduate students and interested high school students to obtain hands-on research experience in this interdisciplinary research effort. These outreach activities will help to enthuse junior researchers and high school students for the field of biosensing and science and technology in general.