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Barulin A, Kim Y, Oh DK, Jang J, Park H, Rho J, Kim I. Dual-wavelength metalens enables Epi-fluorescence detection from single molecules. Nat Commun 2024; 15:26. [PMID: 38167868 PMCID: PMC10761847 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44407-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Single molecule fluorescence spectroscopy is at the heart of molecular biophysics research and the most sensitive biosensing assays. The growing demand for precision medicine and environmental monitoring requires the creation of miniaturized and portable sensing platforms. However, the need for highly sophisticated objective lenses has precluded the development of single molecule detection systems for truly portable devices. Here, we propose a dielectric metalens device of submicrometer thickness to excite and collect light from fluorescent molecules instead of an objective lens. The high numerical aperture, high focusing efficiency, and dual-wavelength operation of the metalens enable the implementation of fluorescence correlation spectroscopy with a single Alexa 647 molecule in the focal volume. Moreover, the metalens enables real-time monitoring of individual fluorescent nanoparticle transitions and identification of hydrodynamic diameters ranging from a few to hundreds of nanometers. This advancement in sensitivity extends the application of the metalens technology to ultracompact single-molecule sensors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandr Barulin
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea
- Department of Intelligent Precision Healthcare Convergence, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea
| | - Yeseul Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea
| | - Dong Kyo Oh
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea
| | - Jaehyuck Jang
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea
- POSCO-POSTECH-RIST Convergence Research Center for Flat Optics and Metaphotonics, Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyemi Park
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea
- Department of Intelligent Precision Healthcare Convergence, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea
| | - Junsuk Rho
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
- POSCO-POSTECH-RIST Convergence Research Center for Flat Optics and Metaphotonics, Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
- National Institute of Nanomaterials Technology (NINT), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
| | - Inki Kim
- Department of Biophysics, Institute of Quantum Biophysics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea.
- Department of Intelligent Precision Healthcare Convergence, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 16419, Republic of Korea.
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