Synchronization of optically self-assembled nanorotors

Self-assembly of nanoparticles by means of interparticle optical forces provides a compelling approach toward contact-free organization and manipulation of nanoscale entities. However, exploration of the rotational degrees of freedom in this process has remained limited, primarily because of the predominant focus on spherical nanoparticles, for which individual particle orientation cannot be determined. Here, we show that gold nanorods, which self-assemble in water under the influence of circularly polarized light, exhibit synchronized rotational motion at kilohertz frequencies. The synchronization is caused by strong optical interactions and occurs despite the presence of thermal diffusion. Our findings elucidate the intricate dynamics arising from the transfer of photon spin angular momentum to optically bound matter and hold promise for advancing the emerging field of light-driven nanomachinery.

High-angle deflection of metagrating-integrated laser emission for high-contrast microscopy

Flat metaoptics components are looking to replace classical optics elements and could lead to extremely compact biophotonics devices if integrated with on-chip light sources and detectors. However, using metasurfaces to shape light into wide angular range wavefronts with high efficiency, as is typically required in high-contrast microscopy applications, remains a challenge. Here we demonstrate curved GaAs metagratings integrated on vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) that enable on-chip illumination in total internal reflection and dark field microscopy. Based on an unconventional design that circumvents the aspect ratio dependent etching problems in monolithic integration, we demonstrate off-axis emission centred at 60° in air and 63° in glass with > 90% and > 70% relative deflection efficiency, respectively. The resulting laser beam is collimated out-of-plane but maintains Gaussian divergence in-plane, resulting in a long and narrow illumination area. We show that metagrating-integrated VCSELs of different kinds can be combined to enable rapid switching between dark-field and total internal reflection illumination. Our approach provides a versatile illumination solution for high-contrast imaging that is compatible with conventional microscopy setups and can be integrated with biophotonics devices, such as portable microscopy, NIR-II range bioimaging, and lab-on-a-chip devices.

Light-driven transport of microparticles with phase-gradient metasurfaces

Optical tweezers have opened numerous possibilities for precise control of microscopic particles for applications in life science and soft matter research and technology. However, traditional optical tweezers employ bulky conventional optics that prevents construction of compact optical manipulation systems. As an alternative, we present an ultrathin silicon-based metasurface that enables simultaneous confinement and propulsion of microparticles based on a combination of intensity and phase-gradient optical forces. The metasurface is constructed as a water-immersion line-focusing element that enables trapping and transport of 2μm particles over a wide area within a thin liquid cell. We envisage that the type of multifunctional metasurfaces reported herein will play a central role in miniaturized optical sensing, driving, and sorting of microscopic objects, such as cells or other biological entities.

Microscopic metavehicles powered and steered by embedded optical metasurfaces

Nanostructured dielectric metasurfaces offer unprecedented opportunities to manipulate light by imprinting an arbitrary phase gradient on an impinging wavefront¹. This has resulted in the realization of a range of flat analogues to classical optical components, such as lenses, waveplates and axicons^2-6. However, the change in linear and angular optical momentum⁷ associated with phase manipulation also results in previously unexploited forces and torques that act on the metasurface itself. Here we show that these optomechanical effects can be utilized to construct optical metavehicles-microscopic particles that can travel long distances under low-intensity plane-wave illumination while being steered by the polarization of the incident light. We demonstrate movement in complex patterns, self-correcting motion and an application as transport vehicles for microscopic cargoes, which include unicellular organisms. The abundance of possible optical metasurfaces attests to the prospect of developing a wide variety of metavehicles with specialized functional behaviours.

Non-equilibrium properties of an active nanoparticle in a harmonic potential

Active particles break out of thermodynamic equilibrium thanks to their directed motion, which leads to complex and interesting behaviors in the presence of confining potentials. When dealing with active nanoparticles, however, the overwhelming presence of rotational diffusion hinders directed motion, leading to an increase of their effective temperature, but otherwise masking the effects of self-propulsion. Here, we demonstrate an experimental system where an active nanoparticle immersed in a critical solution and held in an optical harmonic potential features far-from-equilibrium behavior beyond an increase of its effective temperature. When increasing the laser power, we observe a cross-over from a Boltzmann distribution to a non-equilibrium state, where the particle performs fast orbital rotations about the beam axis. These findings are rationalized by solving the Fokker-Planck equation for the particle's position and orientation in terms of a moment expansion. The proposed self-propulsion mechanism results from the particle's non-sphericity and the lower critical point of the solution.

Nanoplasmonic-Nanofluidic Single-Molecule Biosensors for Ultrasmall Sample Volumes

Detection of small amounts of biological compounds is of ever-increasing importance but also remains an experimental challenge. In this context, plasmonic nanoparticles have emerged as strong contenders enabling label-free optical sensing with single-molecule resolution. However, the performance of a plasmonic single-molecule biosensor is not only dependent on its ability to detect a molecule but equally importantly on its efficiency to transport it to the binding site. Here, we present a theoretical study of the impact of downscaling fluidic structures decorated with plasmonic nanoparticles from conventional microfluidics to nanofluidics. We find that for ultrasmall picolitre sample volumes, nanofluidics enables unprecedented binding characteristics inaccessible with conventional microfluidic devices, and that both detection times and number of detected binding events can be improved by several orders of magnitude. Therefore, we propose nanoplasmonic–nanofluidic biosensing platforms as an efficient tool that paves the way for label-free single-molecule detection from ultrasmall volumes, such as single cells.

Strong Transient Flows Generated by Thermoplasmonic Bubble Nucleation

The challenge of inducing and controlling localized fluid flows for generic force actuation and for achieving efficient mass transport in microfluidics is key to the development of next-generation miniaturized systems for chemistry and life sciences. Here we demonstrate a methodology for the robust generation and precise quantification of extremely strong flow transients driven by vapor bubble nucleation on spatially isolated plasmonic nanoantennas excited by light. The system is capable of producing peak flow speeds of the order mm/s at modulation rates up to ∼100 Hz in water, thus allowing for a variety of high-throughput applications. Analysis of flow dynamics and fluid viscosity dependence indicates that the transient originates in the rapid bubble expansion that follows nucleation rather than being strictly thermocapillary in nature.

Protein kinase A controls yeast growth in visible light

Background

A wide variety of photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic species sense and respond to light, having developed protective mechanisms to adapt to damaging effects on DNA and proteins. While the biology of UV light-induced damage has been well studied, cellular responses to stress from visible light (400–700 nm) remain poorly understood despite being a regular part of the life cycle of many organisms. Here, we developed a high-throughput method for measuring growth under visible light stress and used it to screen for light sensitivity in the yeast gene deletion collection.

Results

We found genes involved in HOG pathway signaling, RNA polymerase II transcription, translation, diphthamide modifications of the translational elongation factor eEF2, and the oxidative stress response to be required for light resistance. Reduced nuclear localization of the transcription factor Msn2 and lower glycogen accumulation indicated higher protein kinase A (cAMP-dependent protein kinase, PKA) activity in many light-sensitive gene deletion strains. We therefore used an ectopic fluorescent PKA reporter and mutants with constitutively altered PKA activity to show that repression of PKA is essential for resistance to visible light.

Conclusion

We conclude that yeast photobiology is multifaceted and that protein kinase A plays a key role in the ability of cells to grow upon visible light exposure. We propose that visible light impacts on the biology and evolution of many non-photosynthetic organisms and have practical implications for how organisms are studied in the laboratory, with or without illumination.

Optical Rotation and Thermometry of Laser Tweezed Silicon Nanorods

Optical rotation of laser tweezed nanoparticles offers a convenient means for optical to mechanical force transduction and sensing at the nanoscale. Plasmonic nanoparticles are the benchmark system for such studies, but their rapid rotation comes at the price of high photoinduced heating due to Ohmic losses. We show that Mie resonant silicon nanorods with characteristic dimensions of ∼220 × 120 nm² can be optically trapped and rotated at frequencies up to 2 kHz in water using circularly polarized laser light. The temperature excess due to heating from the trapping laser was estimated by phonon Raman scattering and particle rotation analysis. We find that the silicon nanorods exhibit slightly improved thermal characteristics compared to Au nanorods with similar rotation performance and optical resonance anisotropy. Altogether, the results indicate that silicon nanoparticles have the potential to become the system of choice for a wide range of optomechanical applications at the nanoscale.

Selective surface-enhanced Raman scattering detection of Tabun, VX and Cyclosarin nerve agents using 4-pyridine amide oxime functionalized gold nanopillars

We have earlier demonstrated sensitive detection of low the volatile nerve agents Tabun, Cyclosarin and VX by using handheld Raman instrumentation in conjunction with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) attained with gold and silver coated Si nanopillar substrates. In the present proof-of-concept study, the gold substrates chemically are functionalized to realize selectivity towards organophosphorus compounds (OPs) with high sensitivity. A potential capturer and reporter molecule, chemical nerve agent antidote, 4-pyridine amide oxime, is evaluated due to its high Raman cross section, high chemical affinity towards gold, and binding specificity to the target substances Tabun, VX and Cyclosarin via the oxime group. Upon selective and covalent binding, the SERS probe undergoes structural changes which are reflected in the spectral SERS responses, making it suitable for indirect monitoring of nerve agents in aqueous solution. With the probe attached to the hotspots of Au-coated Si nanopillars, the SERS signals distinctly discriminate between specific and non-specific analyte binding of Tabun, Cyclosarin and VX down to sub ppm levels. SERS spectrum of 4-PAO is measured after microliter drop coating of aqueous sample solution onto the functionalized substrates and subsequent water evaporation from surfaces. This binding assay is complemented by letting functionalized substrates being immersed into sample solutions 1 h before measuring. Binding specific SERS response decreases in following order: Tabun > VX > Cyclosarin. Overall, the concept looks promising, as expected the candidate probe 4-PAO introduces selectivity to the nanopillar gold substrates without loss of sensitivity.

Present and Future of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering

The discovery of the enhancement of Raman scattering by molecules adsorbed on nanostructured metal surfaces is a landmark in the history of spectroscopic and analytical techniques. Significant experimental and theoretical effort has been directed toward understanding the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect and demonstrating its potential in various types of ultrasensitive sensing applications in a wide variety of fields. In the 45 years since its discovery, SERS has blossomed into a rich area of research and technology, but additional efforts are still needed before it can be routinely used analytically and in commercial products. In this Review, prominent authors from around the world joined together to summarize the state of the art in understanding and using SERS and to predict what can be expected in the near future in terms of research, applications, and technological development. This Review is dedicated to SERS pioneer and our coauthor, the late Prof. Richard Van Duyne, whom we lost during the preparation of this article.

Ultrafast Modulation of Thermoplasmonic Nanobubbles in Water

Thermo-optically generated bubbles in water provide a powerful means for active matter control in microfluidic environments. These bubbles are often formed via continuous-wave illumination of an absorbing medium resulting in bubble nucleation via vaporization of water and subsequent bubble growth from the inward diffusion of gas molecules. However, to date, such bubbles tend to be several microns in diameter, resulting in slow dissipation. This limits the dynamic rate, spatial precision, and throughput of operation in any application. Here we show that isolated plasmonic structures can be utilized as highly localized heating elements to generate thermoplasmonic nanobubbles that can be modulated at frequencies up to several kilohertz in water, orders of magnitude faster than previously demonstrated for microbubbles. The nanobubbles are envisioned as advantageous localized active manipulation elements for high throughput microfluidic applications.

Solar harvesting based on perfect absorbing all-dielectric nanoresonators on a mirror

The high-index all-dielectric nanoantenna system is a platform recently used for multiple applications, from metalenses to light management. These systems usually exhibit low absorption/scattering ratios and are not efficient photon harvesters. Nevertheless, by exploiting far-field interference, all-dielectric nanostructures can be engineered to achieve near-perfect absorption in specific wavelength ranges. Here, we propose - based on electrodynamics simulations - that a metasurface composed of an array of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nanoparticles on a mirror can achieve nearly complete light absorption close to the bandgap. We apply this concept to a realistic device, predicting a boost of optical performance of thin-film solar cells made of such nanostructures. In the proposed device, high-index dielectric nanoparticles act not only as nanoatennas able to concentrate light but also as the solar cell active medium, contacted at its top and bottom by transparent electrodes. By optimization of the exact geometrical parameters, we predict a system that could achieve initial conversion efficiency values well beyond 9% - using only the equivalent of a 75-nm thick active material. The device absorption enhancement is 50% compared to an unstructured device in the 400 nm - 550 nm range and more than 300% in the 650 nm - 700 nm spectral region. We demonstrate that such large values are related to the metasurface properties and to the perfect absorption mechanism.

A Gaussian reflective metasurface for advanced wavefront manipulation

Metasurfaces enable us to control the fundamental properties of light with unprecedented flexibility. However, most metasurfaces realized to date aim at modifying plane waves. While the manipulation of nonplanar wavefronts is encountered in a diverse number of applications, their control using metasurfaces is still in its infancy. Here we design a metareflector able to reflect a diverging Gaussian beam back onto itself with efficiency over 90% and focusing at an arbitrary distance. We outline a clear route towards the design of complex metareflectors that can find applications as diverse as optical tweezing, lasing, and quantum optics.

Transition metal dichalcogenide nanodisks as high-index dielectric Mie nanoresonators

Monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have recently been proposed as an excitonic platform for advanced optical and electronic functionalities^1-3. However, in spite of intense research efforts, it has not been widely appreciated that TMDCs also possess a high refractive index^4,5. This characteristic opens up the possibility to utilize them to construct resonant nanoantennas based on subwavelength geometrical modes^6,7. Here, we show that nanodisks, fabricated from exfoliated multilayer WS₂, support distinct Mie resonances and anapole states⁸ that can be tuned in wavelength over the visible and near-infrared range by varying the nanodisk size and aspect ratio. As a proof of concept, we demonstrate a novel regime of light-matter interaction-anapole-exciton polaritons-which we realize within a single WS₂ nanodisk. We argue that the TMDC material anisotropy and the presence of excitons enrich traditional nanophotonics approaches based on conventional high-index materials and/or plasmonics.

Directional scattering and multipolar contributions to optical forces on silicon nanoparticles in focused laser beams

Nanoparticles made of high index dielectric materials have seen a surge of interest and have been proposed for various applications, such as metalenses, light harvesting and directional scattering. With the advent of fabrication techniques enabling colloidal suspensions, the prospects of optical manipulation of such nanoparticles becomes paramount. High index nanoparticles support electric and magnetic multipolar responses in the visible regime and interference between such modes can give rise to highly directional scattering, in particular a cancellation of back-scattered radiation at the first Kerker condition. Here we present a study of the optical forces on silicon nanoparticles in the visible and near infrared calculated using the transfer matrix method. The zero-backscattering Kerker condition is investigated as an avenue to reduce radiation pressure in an optical trap. We find that while asymmetric scattering does reduce the radiation pressure, the main determining factor of trap stability is the increased particle response near the geometric resonances. The trap stability for non-spherical silicon nanoparticles is also investigated and we find that ellipsoidal deformation of spheres enables trapping of slightly larger particles.

Antibody-Antigen Interaction Dynamics Revealed by Analysis of Single-Molecule Equilibrium Fluctuations on Individual Plasmonic Nanoparticle Biosensors

Antibody-antigen interactions are complex events central to immune response, in vivo and in vitro diagnostics, and development of therapeutic substances. We developed an ultrastable single-molecule localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) sensing platform optimized for studying antibody-antigen interaction kinetics over very long time scales. The setup allowed us to perform equilibrium fluctuations analysis of the PEG/anti-PEG interaction. By time and frequency domain analysis, we demonstrate that reversible adsorption of monovalently bound anti-PEG antibodies is the dominant factor affecting the LSPR fluctuations. The results suggest that equilibrium fluctuation analysis can be an alternative to established methods for determination of interaction rates. In particular, the methodology is suited to analyze molecular systems whose properties change during the initial interaction phases, for example, due to mass transport limitations or, as demonstrated here, because the effective association rate constant varies with surface concentration of adsorbed molecules.

Nanostructured Dielectric Fractals on Resonant Plasmonic Metasurfaces for Selective and Sensitive Optical Sensing of Volatile Compounds

Advances in the understanding and fabrication of plasmonic nanostructures have led to a plethora of unprecedented optoelectronic and optochemical applications. Plasmon resonance has found widespread use in efficient optical transducers of refractive index changes in liquids. However, it has proven challenging to translate these achievements to the selective detection of gases, which typically adsorb non-specifically and induce refractive index changes below the detection limit. Here, it's shown that integration of tailored fractals of dielectric TiO₂ nanoparticles on a plasmonic metasurface strongly enhances the interaction between the plasmonic field and volatile organic molecules and provides a means for their selective detection. Notably, this superior optical response is due to the enhancement of the interaction between the dielectric fractals and the plasmonic metasurface for thickness of up to 1.8 μm, much higher than the evanescent plasmonic near-field (≈30 nm) . Optimal dielectric-plasmonic structures allow measurements of changes in the refractive index of the gas mixture down to <8 × 10^-6 at room temperature and selective identification of three exemplary volatile organic compounds. These findings provide a basis for the development of a novel family of dielectric-plasmonic materials with application extending from light harvesting and photocatalysts to contactless sensors for noninvasive medical diagnostics.

Construction and Operation of a Light-driven Gold Nanorod Rotary Motor System

The possibility to generate and measure rotation and torque at the nanoscale is of fundamental interest to the study and application of biological and artificial nanomotors and may provide new routes towards single cell analysis, studies of non-equilibrium thermodynamics, and mechanical actuation of nanoscale systems. A facile way to drive rotation is to use focused circularly polarized laser light in optical tweezers. Using this approach, metallic nanoparticles can be operated as highly efficient scattering-driven rotary motors spinning at unprecedented rotation frequencies in water.

In this protocol, we outline the construction and operation of circularly-polarized optical tweezers for nanoparticle rotation and describe the instrumentation needed for recording the Brownian dynamics and Rayleigh scattering of the trapped particle. The rotational motion and the scattering spectra provides independent information on the properties of the nanoparticle and its immediate environment. The experimental platform has proven useful as a nanoscopic gauge of viscosity and local temperature, for tracking morphological changes of nanorods and molecular coatings, and as a transducer and probe of photothermal and thermodynamic processes.

Probing Photothermal Effects on Optically Trapped Gold Nanorods by Simultaneous Plasmon Spectroscopy and Brownian Dynamics Analysis

Plasmonic gold nanorods are prime candidates for a variety of biomedical, spectroscopy, data storage, and sensing applications. It was recently shown that gold nanorods optically trapped by a focused circularly polarized laser beam can function as extremely efficient nanoscopic rotary motors. The system holds promise for applications ranging from nanofluidic flow control and nanorobotics to biomolecular actuation and analysis. However, to fully exploit this potential, one needs to be able to control and understand heating effects associated with laser trapping. We investigated photothermal heating of individual rotating gold nanorods by simultaneously probing their localized surface plasmon resonance spectrum and rotational Brownian dynamics over extended periods of time. The data reveal an extremely slow nanoparticle reshaping process, involving migration of the order of a few hundred atoms per minute, for moderate laser powers and a trapping wavelength close to plasmon resonance. The plasmon spectroscopy and Brownian analysis allows for separate temperature estimates based on the refractive index and the viscosity of the water surrounding a trapped nanorod. We show that both measurements yield similar effective temperatures, which correspond to the actual temperature at a distance of the order 10-15 nm from the particle surface. Our results shed light on photothermal processes on the nanoscale and will be useful in evaluating the applicability and performance of nanorod motors and optically heated nanoparticles for a variety of applications.

Wavevector-Selective Nonlinear Plasmonic Metasurfaces

Electromagnetic metasurfaces with strong nonlinear responses and angular selectivity could offer many new avenues for designing ultrathin optics components. We investigated the optical second harmonic generation from plasmonic metasurfaces composed of aligned gold nanopillars with a pronounced out-of-plane tilt using a flexible nonlinear Fourier microscope. The experimental and computational results demonstrate that these samples function as wavevector-selective nonlinear metasurfaces, that is, the coherent second harmonic signal does not only depend on the polarization and wavelength of the excitation beam, but also of its direction of incidence, in spite of the subwavelength thickness of the active layer. Specifically, we observe that the nonlinear response can vary by almost two orders-of-magnitude when the incidence angle is changed from positive to negative values compared to the surface normal. Further, it is demonstrated that these metasurfaces act as a directional nonlinear mirrors, paving the way for new design of directional meta-mirrors in the nonlinear regime.

Metasurfaces and Colloidal Suspensions Composed of 3D Chiral Si Nanoresonators

High-refractive-index silicon nanoresonators are promising low-loss alternatives to plasmonic particles in CMOS-compatible nanophotonics applications. However, complex 3D particle morphologies are challenging to realize in practice, thus limiting the range of achievable optical functionalities. Using 3D film structuring and a novel gradient mask transfer technique, the first intrinsically chiral dielectric metasurface is fabricated in the form of a monolayer of twisted silicon nanocrescents that can be easily detached and dissolved into colloidal suspension. The metasurfaces exhibit selective handedness and a circular dichroism as large as 160° µm^-1 due to pronounced differences in induced current loops for left-handed and right-handed polarization. The detailed morphology of the detached particles is analyzed using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. Furthermore, it is shown that the particles can be manipulated in solution using optical tweezers. The fabrication and detachment method can be extended to different nanoparticle geometries and paves the way for a wide range of novel nanophotonic experiments and applications of high-index dielectrics.

Superior LSPR substrates based on electromagnetic decoupling for on-a-chip high-throughput label-free biosensing

Localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) biosensing based on supported metal nanoparticles offers unparalleled possibilities for high-end miniaturization, multiplexing and high-throughput label-free molecular interaction analysis in real time when integrated within an opto-fluidic environment. However, such LSPR-sensing devices typically contain extremely large regions of dielectric materials that are open to molecular adsorption, which must be carefully blocked to avoid compromising the device readings. To address this issue, we made the support essentially invisible to the LSPR by carefully removing the dielectric material overlapping with the localized plasmonic fields through optimized wet-etching. The resulting LSPR substrate, which consists of gold nanodisks centered on narrow SiO₂ pillars, exhibits markedly reduced vulnerability to nonspecific substrate adsorption, thus allowing, in an ideal case, the implementation of thicker and more efficient passivation layers. We demonstrate that this approach is effective and fully compatible with state-of-the-art multiplexed real-time biosensing technology and thus represents the ideal substrate design for high-throughput label-free biosensing systems with minimal sample consumption.

Large-Scale Silicon Nanophotonic Metasurfaces with Polarization Independent Near-Perfect Absorption

Optically thin perfect light absorbers could find many uses in science and technology. However, most physical realizations of perfect absorption for the optical range rely on plasmonic excitations in nanostructured metallic metasurfaces, for which the absorbed light energy is quickly lost as heat due to rapid plasmon decay. Here we show that a silicon metasurface excited in a total internal reflection configuration can absorb at least 97% of incident near-infrared light due to interferences between coherent electric and magnetic dipole scattering from the silicon nanopillars that build up the metasurface and the reflected wave from the supporting glass substrate. This "near-perfect" absorption phenomenon loads more than 50 times more light energy into the semiconductor than what would be the case for a uniform silicon sheet of equal surface density, irrespective of incident polarization. We envisage that the concept could be used for the development of novel light harvesting and optical sensor devices.

Multidimensional Hybridization of Dark Surface Plasmons

Synthetic three-dimensional (3D) nanoarchitectures are providing more control over light-matter interactions and rapidly progressing photonic-based technology. These applications often utilize the strong synergy between electromagnetic fields and surface plasmons (SPs) in metallic nanostructures. However, many of the SP interactions hosted by complex 3D nanostructures are poorly understood because they involve dark hybridized states that are typically undetectable with far-field optical spectroscopy. Here, we use experimental and theoretical electron energy loss spectroscopy to elucidate dark SPs and their interactions in layered metal-insulator-metal disc nanostructures. We go beyond the established dipole SP hybridization analysis by measuring breathing and multipolar SP hybridization. In addition, we reveal multidimensional SP hybridization that simultaneously utilizes in-plane and out-of-plane SP coupling. Near-field classic electrodynamics calculations provide excellent agreement with all experiments. These results advance the fundamental understanding of SP hybridization in 3D nanostructures and provide avenues to further tune the interaction between electromagnetic fields and matter.

Light-sensing via hydrogen peroxide and a peroxiredoxin

Yeast lacks dedicated photoreceptors; however, blue light still causes pronounced oscillations of the transcription factor Msn2 into and out of the nucleus. Here we show that this poorly understood phenomenon is initiated by a peroxisomal oxidase, which converts light into a hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) signal that is sensed by the peroxiredoxin Tsa1 and transduced to thioredoxin, to counteract PKA-dependent Msn2 phosphorylation. Upon H₂O₂, the nuclear retention of PKA catalytic subunits, which contributes to delayed Msn2 nuclear concentration, is antagonized in a Tsa1-dependent manner. Conversely, peroxiredoxin hyperoxidation interrupts the H₂O₂ signal and drives Msn2 oscillations by superimposing on PKA feedback regulation. Our data identify a mechanism by which light could be sensed in all cells lacking dedicated photoreceptors. In particular, the use of H₂O₂ as a second messenger in signalling is common to Msn2 oscillations and to light-induced entrainment of circadian rhythms and suggests conserved roles for peroxiredoxins in endogenous rhythms.

While yeasts lack dedicated photoreceptors, they nonetheless possess metabolic rhythms responsive to light. Here the authors find that light signalling in budding yeast involves the production of H₂O₂, which in turn regulates protein kinase A through a peroxiredoxin-thioredoxin redox relay.

FRET enhancement close to gold nanoparticles positioned in DNA origami constructs

Here we investigate the energy transfer rates of a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair positioned in close proximity to a 5 nm gold nanoparticle (AuNP) on a DNA origami construct. We study the distance dependence of the FRET rate by varying the location of the donor molecule, D, relative to the AuNP while maintaining a fixed location of the acceptor molecule, A. The presence of the AuNP induces an alteration in the spontaneous emission of the donor (including radiative and non-radiative rates) which is strongly dependent on the distance between the donor and AuNP surface. Simultaneously, the energy transfer rates are enhanced at shorter D-A (and D-AuNP) distances. Overall, in addition to the direct influence of the acceptor and AuNP on the donor decay there is also a significant increase in decay rate not explained by the sum of the two interactions. This leads to enhanced energy transfer between donor and acceptor in the presence of a 5 nm AuNP. We also demonstrate that the transfer rate in the three "particle" geometry (D + A + AuNP) depends approximately linearly on the transfer rate in the donor-AuNP system, suggesting the possibility to control FRET process with electric field induced by 5 nm AuNPs close to the donor fluorophore. It is concluded that DNA origami is a very versatile platform for studying interactions between molecules and plasmonic nanoparticles in general and FRET enhancement in particular.

Hot Electron Generation and Cathodoluminescence Nanoscopy of Chiral Split Ring Resonators

Three-dimensional chiral plasmonic nanostructures have been shown to be able to dramatically boost photon-spin selective light-matter interactions, potentially leading to novel photonics, molecular spectroscopy, and light-harvesting applications based on circularly polarized light. Here, we show that chiral split-ring gold nanoresonators interfaced to a wide band gap semiconductor exhibit a contrast in hot-electron transfer rate between left-handed and right-handed visible light that essentially mimics the far-field circular dichroism of the structures. We trace down the origin of this effect to the differential excitation of the thinnest part of the split-ring structures using dichroic-sensitive cathodoluminescence imaging with nanometer spatial resolution. The results highlight the intricate interplay between the near-field and far-field chiral response of a nanostructure and establishes a clear link to the emerging field of hot carrier plasmonics with numerous potential applications in photocatalysis and solar light harvesting.

Continuous-Gradient Plasmonic Nanostructures Fabricated by Evaporation on a Partially Exposed Rotating Substrate

A continuous-gradient approach of material evaporation is employed to fabricate nanostructures with varying geometric parameters, such as thickness, lateral positioning, and orientation on a single substrate. The method developed for mask lithography allows continuous tuning of the physical properties of a sample. The technique is highly valuable in simplifying the overall optimization process for constructing metasurfaces.

Metasurfaces: Continuous-Gradient Plasmonic Nanostructures Fabricated by Evaporation on a Partially Exposed Rotating Substrate (Adv. Mater. 23/2016)

A continuous-gradient approach of material evaporation is employed by L. Shao, M. Käll, and co-workers to fabricate nanostructures with varying geometric parameters such as thickness, lateral positioning, and orientation on a single substrate. This method for mask lithography, described on page 4658, allows continuous tuning of the physical properties of a sample. The technique is highly valuable in simplifying the overall optimization process for constructing metasurfaces.

Polarization conversion-based molecular sensing using anisotropic plasmonic metasurfaces

Anisotropic media induce changes in the polarization state of transmitted and reflected light. Here we combine this effect with the refractive index sensitivity typical of plasmonic nanoparticles to experimentally demonstrate self-referenced single wavelength refractometric sensing based on polarization conversion. We fabricated anisotropic plasmonic metasurfaces composed of gold dimers and, as a proof of principle, measured the changes in the rotation of light polarization induced by biomolecular adsorption with a surface sensitivity of 0.2 ng cm(-2). We demonstrate the possibility of miniaturized sensing and we show that experimental results can be reproduced by analytical theory. Various ways to increase the sensitivity and applicability of the sensing scheme are discussed.

Detection of nerve gases using surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrates with high droplet adhesion

Threats from chemical warfare agents, commonly known as nerve gases, constitute a serious security issue of increasing global concern because of surging terrorist activity worldwide. However, nerve gases are difficult to detect using current analytical tools and outside dedicated laboratories. Here we demonstrate that surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) can be used for sensitive detection of femtomol quantities of two nerve gases, VX and Tabun, using a handheld Raman device and SERS substrates consisting of flexible gold-covered Si nanopillars. The substrate surface exhibits high droplet adhesion and nanopillar clustering due to elasto-capillary forces, resulting in enrichment of target molecules in plasmonic hot-spots with high Raman enhancement. The results may pave the way for strategic life-saving SERS detection of chemical warfare agents in the field.

Directional Light Extinction and Emission in a Metasurface of Tilted Plasmonic Nanopillars

Plasmonic optical antennas and metamaterials with an ability to boost light-matter interactions for particular incidence or emission angles could find widespread use in solar harvesting, biophotonics, and in improving photon source performance at optical frequencies. However, directional plasmonic structures have generally large footprints or require complicated geometries and costly nanofabrication technologies. Here, we present a directional metasurface realized by breaking the out-of-plane symmetry of its individual elements: tilted subwavelength plasmonic gold nanopillars. Directionality is caused by the complex charge oscillation induced in each individual nanopillar, which essentially acts as a tilted dipole above a dielectric interface. The metasurface is homogeneous over a macroscopic area and it is fabricated by a combination of facile colloidal lithography and off-normal metal deposition. Fluorescence excitation and emission from dye molecules deposited on the metasurface is enhanced in specific directions determined by the tilt angle of the nanopillars. We envisage that these directional metasurfaces can be used as cost-effective substrates for surface-enhanced spectroscopies and a variety of nanophotonic applications.

Gold Nanorod Rotary Motors Driven by Resonant Light Scattering

Efficient and robust artificial nanomotors could provide a variety of exciting possibilities for applications in physics, biology and chemistry, including nanoelectromechanical systems, biochemical sensing, and drug delivery. However, the application of current man-made nanomotors is limited by their sophisticated fabrication techniques, low mechanical output power and severe environmental requirements, making their performance far below that of natural biomotors. Here we show that single-crystal gold nanorods can be rotated extremely fast in aqueous solutions through optical torques dominated by plasmonic resonant scattering of circularly polarized laser light with power as low as a few mW. The nanorods are trapped in 2D against a glass surface, and their rotational dynamics is highly dependent on their surface plasmon resonance properties. They can be kept continuously rotating for hours with limited photothermal side effects and they can be applied for detection of molecular binding with high sensitivity. Because of their biocompatibility, mechanical and thermal stability, and record rotation speeds reaching up to 42 kHz (2.5 million revolutions per minute), these rotary nanomotors could advance technologies to meet a wide range of future nanomechanical and biomedical needs in fields such as nanorobotics, nanosurgery, DNA manipulation and nano/microfluidic flow control.

Ultimate Limit of Light Extinction by Nanophotonic Structures

Nanophotonic structures make it possible to precisely engineer the optical response at deep subwavelength scales. However, a fundamental understanding of the general performance limits remains a challenge. Here we use extensive electrodynamics simulations to demonstrate that the so-called f-sum rule sets a strict upper bound to the light extinction by nanostructures regardless their internal interactions and retardation effects. In particular, we show that the f-sum rule applies to arbitrarily complex plasmonic metal structures that exhibit an extraordinary spectral sensitivity to size, shape, near-field coupling effects, and incident polarization. The results may be used for benchmarking light scattering and absorption efficiencies, thus imposing fundamental limits on solar light harvesting, biomedical photonics, and optical communications.

Interactions of Bacterial Lipopolysaccharides with Gold Nanorod Surfaces Investigated by Refractometric Sensing

The interface between nanoparticles and bacterial surfaces is of great interest for applications in nanomedicine and food safety. Here, we demonstrate that interactions between gold nanorods and bacterial surface molecules are governed by the nanoparticle surface coating. Polymer-coated gold nanorod substrates are exposed to lipopolysaccharides extracted from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica and Escherichia coli, and attachment is monitored using localized surface plasmon resonance refractometric sensing. The number of lipopolysaccharide molecules attached per nanorod is calculated from the shift in the plasmon maximum, which results from the change in refractive index after analyte binding. Colloidal gold nanorods in water are also incubated with lipopolysaccharides to demonstrate the effect of lipopolysaccharide concentration on plasmon shift, ζ-potential, and association constant. Both gold nanorod surface charge and surface chemistry affect gold nanorod-lipopolysaccharide interactions. In general, anionic lipopolysaccharides was found to attach more effectively to cationic gold nanorods than to neutral or anionic gold nanorods. Some variation in lipopolysaccharide attachment is also observed between the three strains studied, demonstrating the potential complexity of bacteria-nanoparticle interactions.

Schottky barrier formation and band bending revealed by first- principles calculations

The formation of a Schottky barrier at the metal-semiconductor interface is widely utilised in semiconductor devices. With the emerging of novel Schottky barrier based nanoelectronics, a further microscopic understanding of this interface is in high demand. Here we provide an atomistic insight into potential barrier formation and band bending by ab initio simulations and model analysis of a prototype Schottky diode, i.e., niobium doped rutile titania in contact with gold (Au/Nb:TiO2). The local Schottky barrier height is found to vary between 0 and 1.26 eV depending on the position of the dopant. The band bending is caused by a dopant induced dipole field between the interface and the dopant site, whereas the pristine Au/TiO2 interface does not show any band bending. These findings open the possibility for atomic scale optimisation of the Schottky barrier and light harvesting in metal-semiconductor nanostructures.

Plasmon Enhanced Internal Photoemission in Antenna-Spacer-Mirror Based Au/TiO₂ Nanostructures

Emission of photoexcited hot electrons from plasmonic metal nanostructures to semiconductors is key to a number of proposed nanophotonics technologies for solar harvesting, water splitting, photocatalysis, and a variety of optical sensing and photodetector applications. Favorable materials and catalytic properties make systems based on gold and TiO2 particularly interesting, but the internal photoemission efficiency for visible light is low because of the wide bandgap of the semiconductor. We investigated the incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency of thin TiO2 films decorated with Au nanodisk antennas in an electrochemical circuit and found that incorporation of a Au mirror beneath the semiconductor amplified the photoresponse for light with wavelength λ = 500-950 nm by a factor 2-10 compared to identical structures lacking the mirror component. Classical electrodynamics simulations showed that the enhancement effect is caused by a favorable interplay between localized surface plasmon excitations and cavity modes that together amplify the light absorption in the Au/TiO2 interface. The experimentally determined internal quantum efficiency for hot electron transfer decreases monotonically with wavelength, similar to the probability for interband excitations with energy higher than the Schottky barrier obtained from a density functional theory band structure simulation of a thin Au/TiO2 slab.

Dimer-on-mirror SERS substrates with attogram sensitivity fabricated by colloidal lithography

Nanoplasmonic substrates with optimized field-enhancement properties are a key component in the continued development of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) molecular analysis but are challenging to produce inexpensively in large scale. We used a facile and cost-effective bottom-up technique, colloidal hole-mask lithography, to produce macroscopic dimer-on-mirror gold nanostructures. The optimized structures exhibit excellent SERS performance, as exemplified by detection of 2.5 and 50 attograms of BPE, a common SERS probe, using Raman microscopy and a simple handheld device, respectively. The corresponding Raman enhancement factor is of the order 10(11), which compares favourably to previously reported record performance values.

Realizing Strong Light-Matter Interactions between Single-Nanoparticle Plasmons and Molecular Excitons at Ambient Conditions

Realizing strong light-matter interactions between individual two-level systems and resonating cavities in atomic and solid state systems opens up possibilities to study optical nonlinearities on a single-photon level, which can be useful for future quantum information processing networks. However, these efforts have been hampered by unfavorable experimental conditions, such as cryogenic temperatures and ultrahigh vacuum, required to study such systems and phenomena. Although several attempts to realize strong light-matter interactions at room temperature using plasmon resonances have been made, successful realizations on the single-nanoparticle level are still lacking. Here, we demonstrate the strong coupling between plasmons confined within a single silver nanoprism and excitons in molecular J aggregates at ambient conditions. Our findings show that deep subwavelength mode volumes V together with quality factors Q that are reasonably high for plasmonic nanostructures result in a strong-coupling figure of merit-Q/sqrt[V] as high as ∼6×10^{3}  μm^{-3/2}, a value comparable to state-of-the-art photonic crystal and microring resonator cavities. This suggests that plasmonic nanocavities, and specifically silver nanoprisms, can be used for room temperature quantum optics.

Explosive and chemical threat detection by surface-enhanced Raman scattering: a review

Acts of terror and warfare threats are challenging tasks for defense agencies around the world and of growing importance to security conscious policy makers and the general public. Explosives and chemical warfare agents are two of the major concerns in this context, as illustrated by the recent Boston Marathon bombing and nerve gas attacks on civilians in the Middle East. To prevent such tragic disasters, security personnel must be able to find, identify and deactivate the threats at multiple locations and levels. This involves major technical and practical challenges, such as detection of ultra-low quantities of hazardous compounds at remote locations for anti-terror purposes and monitoring of environmental sanitation of dumped or left behind toxic substances and explosives. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is one of todays most interesting and rapidly developing methods for label-free ultrasensitive vibrational "fingerprinting" of a variety of molecular compounds. Performance highlights include attomolar detection of TNT and DNT explosives, a sensitivity that few, if any, other technique can compete with. Moreover, instrumentation needed for SERS analysis are becoming progressively better, smaller and cheaper, and can today be acquired for a retail price close to 10,000 US$. This contribution aims to give a comprehensive overview of SERS as a technique for detection of explosives and chemical threats. We discuss the prospects of SERS becoming a major tool for convenient in-situ threat identification and we summarize existing SERS detection methods and substrates with particular focus on ultra-sensitive real-time detection. General concepts, detection capabilities and perspectives are discussed in order to guide potential users of the technique for homeland security and anti-warfare purposes.

Laser trapping of colloidal metal nanoparticles

Optical trapping using focused laser beams (laser tweezers) has been proven to be extremely useful for contactless manipulation of a variety of small objects, including biological cells, organelles within cells, and a wide range of other dielectric micro- and nano-objects. Colloidal metal nanoparticles have drawn increasing attention in the field of optical trapping because of their unique interactions with electromagnetic radiation, caused by surface plasmon resonance effects, enabling a large number of nano-optical applications of high current interest. Here we try to give a comprehensive overview of the field of laser trapping and manipulation of metal nanoparticles based on results reported in the recent literature. We also discuss and describe the fundamentals of optical forces in the context of plasmonic nanoparticles, including effects of polarization, optical angular momentum, and laser heating effects, as well as the various techniques that have been used to trap and manipulate metal nanoparticles. We conclude by suggesting possible directions for future research.

Optical magnetism and plasmonic Fano resonances in metal-insulator-metal oligomers

The possibility of achieving optical magnetism at visible frequencies using plasmonic nanostructures has recently been a subject of great interest. The concept is based on designing structures that support plasmon modes with electron oscillation patterns that imitate current loops, that is, magnetic dipoles. However, the magnetic resonances are typically spectrally narrow, thereby limiting their applicability in, for example, metamaterial designs. We show that a significantly broader magnetic response can be realized in plasmonic pentamers constructed from metal-insulator-metal (MIM) sandwich particles. Each MIM unit acts as a magnetic meta-atom and the optical magnetism is rendered quasi-broadband through hybridization of the in-plane modes. We demonstrate that scattering spectra of individual MIM pentamers exhibit multiple Fano resonances and a broad subradiant spectral window that signals the magnetic interaction and a hierarchy of coupling effects in these intricate three-dimensional nanoparticle oligomers.

Quasi-isotropic surface plasmon polariton generation through near-field coupling to a penrose pattern of silver nanoparticles

Quasicrystals are structures that possess long-range order without being periodic. We investigate the unique characteristics of a photonic quasicrystal that consists of plasmonic Ag nanodisks arranged in a Penrose pattern. The quasicrystal scatters light in a complex but spectacular diffraction pattern that can be directly imaged in the back focal plane of an optical microscope, allowing us to assess the excitation efficiency of the various diffraction modes. Furthermore, surface plasmon polaritons can be launched almost isotropically through near-field grating coupling when the quasicrystal is positioned close to a homogeneous silver surface. We characterize the dispersion relation of the different excited plasmon modes by reflection measurements and simulations. It is demonstrated that the quasicrystal in-coupling efficiency is strongly enhanced compared to a nanoparticle array with the same particle density but only short-range lateral order. We envision that the system can be useful for a number of advanced light harvesting and optoelectronic applications.

A thermal plasmonic sensor platform: resistive heating of nanohole arrays

We have created a simple and efficient thermal plasmonic sensor platform by letting a DC current heat plasmonic nanohole arrays. The sensor can be used to determine thermodynamic parameters in addition to monitoring molecular reactions in real-time. As an application example, we use the thermal sensor to determine the kinetics and activation energy for desorption of thiol monolayers on gold. Further, the temperature of the metal can be measured optically by the spectral shift of the bonding surface plasmon mode (0.015 nm/K). We show that this resonance shift is caused by thermal lattice expansion, which reduces the plasma frequency of the metal. The sensor is also used to determine the thin film thermal expansion coefficient through a theoretical model for the expected resonance shift.

Plasmonic particles set into fast orbital motion by an optical vortex beam

We optically trap plasmonic gold particles in two dimensions and set them into circular motion around the optical axis using a helically phased vortex laser beam. The orbiting frequency of the particles reaches 86 Hz, which corresponds to a particle velocity of the order 1 mm per second, for an incident laser power of a few tens of milliwatts. The experimentally determined orbiting frequencies are found to be well in line with the notion that the beam carries an orbital angular momentum of ħl per photon.

Approaching the strong coupling limit in single plasmonic nanorods interacting with J-aggregates

We studied scattering and extinction of individual silver nanorods coupled to the J-aggregate form of the cyanine dye TDBC as a function of plasmon – exciton detuning. The measured single particle spectra exhibited a strongly suppressed scattering and extinction rate at wavelengths corresponding to the J-aggregate absorption band, signaling strong interaction between the localized surface plasmon of the metal core and the exciton of the surrounding molecular shell. In the context of strong coupling theory, the observed “transparency dips” correspond to an average vacuum Rabi splitting of the order of 100 meV, which approaches the plasmon dephasing rate and, thereby, the strong coupling limit for the smallest investigated particles. These findings could pave the way towards ultra-strong light-matter interaction on the nanoscale and active plasmonic devices operating at room temperature.

Plasmon-enhanced enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay on large arrays of individual particles made by electron beam lithography

Ultrasensitive biosensing is one of the main driving forces behind the dynamic research field of plasmonics. We have previously demonstrated that the sensitivity of single nanoparticle plasmon spectroscopy can be greatly enhanced by enzymatic amplification of the refractive index footprint of individual protein molecules, so-called plasmon-enhanced enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The technique, which is based on generation of an optically dense precipitate catalyzed by horseradish peroxidase at the metal surface, allowed for colorimetric analysis of ultralow molecular surface coverages with a limit of detection approaching the single molecule limit. However, the plasmonic response induced by a single enzyme can be expected to vary for a number of reasons, including inhomogeneous broadening of the sensing properties of individual particles, variation in electric field enhancement over the surface of a single particle and variation in size and morphology of the enzymatic precipitate. In this report, we discuss how such inhomogeneities affect the possibility to quantify the number of molecules bound to a single nanoparticle. The discussion is based on simulations and measurements of large arrays of well-separated gold nanoparticles fabricated by electron beam lithography (EBL). The new data confirms the intrinsic single-molecule sensitivity of the technique but we were not able to clearly resolve the exact number of adsorbed molecules per single particle. The results indicate that the main sources of uncertainty come from variations in sensitivity across the surface of individual particles and between different particles. There is also a considerable uncertainty in the actual precipitate morphology produced by individual enzyme molecules. Possible routes toward further improvements of the methodology are discussed.

Complete light annihilation in an ultrathin layer of gold nanoparticles

We experimentally demonstrate that an incident light beam can be completely annihilated in a single layer of randomly distributed, widely spaced gold nanoparticle antennas. Under certain conditions, each antenna dissipates more than 10 times the number of photons that enter its geometric cross-sectional area. The underlying physics can be understood in terms of a critical coupling to localized plasmons in the nanoparticles or, equivalently, in terms of destructive optical Fano interference and so-called coherent absorption.