Development of advanced photoacoustic, photothermal and photocarrier techniques and biosensors for biomedical and optoelectronic diagnostics

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The proposed research encompasses four distinct areas: 1) the introduction of low-injection photo-carrier radiometry (PCR) to monitor heavy metal contamination (Fe, Cu) in semiconductor silicon with a near infrared photomultiplier instead of an InGaAs photodiode. Low-injection conditions are crucial for assessing the electronic quality of photonic and microelectronic semiconductor devices under realistic industrial operating conditions. 2) Fourier-domain biomedical depth selective photoacoustic tomographic (FD-PAT) imaging of cancerous lesions in soft tissues using specialty piezoelectric ultrasonic transducer arrays. When fully developed, this technology has the potential to deliver ultrasonic-quality image resolution, and to provide contrast between healthy and cancerous tissues rivaling that of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at a fraction of the cost. 3) The introduction of a potentially breakthrough biothermophotonic technique leading to the development of a sensitive noninvasive, non-contact device for blood glucose monitoring in diabetic patients. 4) The development of a combined photothermal radiometric (PTR) and modulated luminescence (LUM) dynamic lock-in imaging technique for real-time assessment of very early dental carious lesions. Two cameras will be used to capture dynamic lock-in images of LUM (near-IR camera) and of PTR (thermal-IR camera). The success of this dental imaging project may lead to a breakthrough safe dental clinical imaging technology to compete with ionizing X-radiographs in clinical settings. The proposed research program is aimed at (1) boosting Canadian competitiveness in industrial electronic device and materials processing through improved quality control; (2) developing breakthrough techniques and biosensor instrumentation for the earliest possible detection of diseases such as breast cancerous lesions, diabetes and dental demineralization caries which will benefit all Canadians; and (3) offering advanced training of HQP in multidisciplinary problems in key industrial and health sector areas in which Canada has an active presence and must continue competing internationally, or in new growth fields in which it should find opportunities to compete.