Plasmonic sensing in extreme environments

等离子体激元学已成为纯科学和应用科学的主流研究领域。敏感和广泛适用的传感设备的前景导致等离子体传感器在化学，生物和环境应用中的演示。我的研究计划将专注于化学分析中等离子体传感的发展，用于检测全血中的分子，用于监测细胞和神经元的细胞分泌事件，以及用于检测生命潜在来源中的生命构建模块，所有未满足的化学分析需求。全血感测是在护理点成功使用等离子体传感器的最后障碍之一。全血的复杂性对等离子体传感器的分子选择性提出了挑战。在第一个研究轴中，我们将开发用于全血预处理的微透析等离子体的概念，用于在白血病治疗过程中直接在全血中表达的抗生素和抗体的表面等离子体共振（SPR）的即时感测。第二个研究轴旨在监测细胞或神经元分泌的分子，这是分子传感的当代挑战。我们最近引入了等离子纳米移液管传感的概念，等离子纳米移液管是用金纳米颗粒装饰的纳米级毛细管，用于表面增强拉曼散射分析（Sers）。由细胞或神经元分泌的分子将与等离子体纳米移液管相互作用，并且Sers响应的动态测量将提供关于细胞和神经元的细胞外环境的分子信息。随着这项技术的发展，我们的目标是提供一个定量的工具来研究神经系统疾病的生物学。生命的起源正吸引着科学家和普通大众。因此，最后一个研究轴将有助于这一领域的检测分子在生命的起源，在推定的生命来源。热液喷口或其他地球化学来源中生命组成部分的地球化学合成是一种可能的生命来源。此外，最近的报告显示了火星上液态水的光谱特征，将启动一系列考察，以研究火星水的含量。我将开发等离子体传感器，使Sers测量在极端的地球化学环境中，以确定和量化生命的基石，如氨基酸，糖和其他小分子在热液喷口条件。用于探测生命构成要素的表面增强Sers传感器的成功开发，最终将有助于测量热液喷口流体的成分，或可能在其他有液态水的行星上进行测量。这个令人兴奋的等离子体化学分析研究计划将为护理点临床诊断，细胞和神经元的生物医学研究提供新的工具，并有助于探索生命的起源。

Plasmonics has become a mainstream research area in pure and applied sciences. The promise of sensitive and broadly applicable sensing devices led to the demonstration of plasmonic sensors in chemical, biological and environmental applications. My research program will focus on the development of plasmonic sensing in chemical analysis for the detection of molecules in whole blood, for monitoring cellular secretion events of cells and neurons, and for the detection of the building blocks of life in the potential sources of life, all unmet needs in chemical analysis. Whole blood sensing is one of the last barriers for the successful use of plasmonic sensors at the point-of-care. The complexity of whole blood challenges the molecular selectivity of plasmonic sensors. In the first research axis, we will develop the concept of microdialysis plasmonics for whole blood pre-processing for point-of-care sensing with surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of antibiotics and antibodies expressed in the course of the leukemia treatment directly in whole blood. The second research axis aims at monitoring molecules secreted by cells or neurons, a contemporary challenge in molecular sensing. We have recently introduced the concept of sensing with plasmonic nanopipettes, which are nanoscale capillaries decorated with gold nanoparticles for surface enhanced Raman scattering analysis (SERS). The molecules secreted by cells or neurons will interact with the plasmonic nanopipette and dynamic measurement of the SERS response will provide molecular information about the extracellular environment of cells and neurons. With the development of this technique, we aim at providing a quantitative tool to study the biology of neurological diseases. The origin of life is fascinating scientists and the general public. The last research axis will thus contribute to this field with the detection molecules at the origin of life in putative sources of life. The geochemical synthesis of the building blocks of life in hydrothermal vents or other geochemical sources is a possible source of life. Also, the recent report showing the spectroscopic signature of liquid water on Mars will launch a series of expeditions to study the content of the Martian water. I will develop plasmonic sensors enabling SERS measurements in extreme geochemical environments to identify and quantify the building blocks of life such as amino acids, sugars and other small molecules in hydrothermal vents conditions. The successful development of a SERS sensor for detecting the building blocks of life will ultimately facilitate the measurement of the composition of hydrothermal vent fluids or potentially on other planets with liquid water. This exciting research program on chemical analysis with plasmonics will provide new tools for point of care clinical diagnostics, for biomedical studies of cells and neurons and to contribute to the quest of the origin of life.