Yousef Nazirizadeh

Photonic crystal biosensors towards on-chip integration

Photonic crystal technology has attracted large interest in the last years. The possibility to generate highly sensitive sensor elements with photonic crystal structures is very promising for medical or environmental applications. The low-cost fabrication on the mass scale is as advantageous as the compactness and reliability of photonic crystal biosensors. The possibility to integrate microfluidic channels together with photonic crystal structures allows for highly compact devices. This article reviews different types of photonic crystal sensors including 1D photonic crystal biosensors, biosensors with photonic crystal slabs, photonic crystal waveguide biosensors and biosensors with photonic crystal microcavities. Their applications in biomolecular and pathogen detection are highlighted. The sensitivities and the detection limits of the different biosensors are compared. The focus is on the possibilities to integrate photonic crystal biosensors on-chip.

Low-cost label-free biosensors using photonic crystals embedded between crossed polarizers

There is a strong need for low-cost biosensors to enable rapid, on-site analysis of biological, biomedical, or chemical substances. We propose a platform for label-free optical biosensors based on applying the analyte onto a surface-functionalized photonic crystal slab and performing a transmission measurement with two crossed polarization filters. This dark-field approach allows for efficient background suppression as only the photonic crystal guided-mode resonances interacting with the functionalized surface experience significant polarization rotation. We present a compact biosensor demonstrator using a low-cost light emitting diode and a simple photodiode capable of detecting the binding kinetics of a 2.5 nM solution of the protein streptavidin on a biotin-functionalized photonic crystal surface.

Optical characterization of photonic crystal slabs using orthogonally oriented polarization filters

We present an experimental method for direct analysis of guided-mode resonances in photonic crystal slab structures using transmission measurements. By positioning the photonic crystal slab between orthogonally oriented polarization filters light transmission is suppressed except for the guided-mode resonances. Angle resolved transmission measurements with crossed polarizers are performed to obtain the band structure around the Gamma-point. Results are compared to mode simulations. Spatially resolved measurements in a confocal microscope setup are used for homogeneity characterizations. Stitching errors and inhomogeneities in exposure dose down to 1.3% in photonic crystal slabs fabricated by electron beam lithography are observed using this method.

Handheld imaging photonic crystal biosensor for multiplexed, label-free protein detection.

We present a handheld biosensor system for the label-free and specific multiplexed detection of several biomarkers employing a spectrometer-free imaging measurement system. A photonic crystal surface functionalized with multiple specific ligands forms the optical transducer. The photonic crystal slab is fabricated on a glass substrate by replicating a periodic grating master stamp with a period of 370 nm into a photoresist via nanoimprint lithography and deposition of a 70-nm titanium dioxide layer. Capture molecules are coupled covalently and drop-wise to the photonic crystal surface. With a simple camera and imaging optics the surface-normal transmission is detected. In the transmission spectrum guided-mode resonances are observed that shift due to protein binding. This shift is observed as an intensity change in the green color channel of the camera. Non-functionalized image sections are used for continuous elimination of background drift. In a first experiment we demonstrate the specific and time-resolved detection of 90.0 nm CD40 ligand antibody, 90.0 nM EGF antibody, and 500 nM streptavidin in parallel on one sensor chip. In a second experiment, aptamers with two different spacer lengths are used as receptor. The binding kinetics with association and dissociation of 250 nM thrombin and regeneration of the sensor surface with acidic tris-HCl-buffer (pH 5.0) is presented for two measurement cycles.

Experimental quality factor determination of guided-mode resonances in photonic crystal slabs

We report on a method how quality factors of guided-mode resonances in photonic crystal slabs (PCSs) can be determined in the reciprocal space. Transmission measurements through PCSs are performed using crossed polarization filters before and after the PCS. Consequently the unwanted illumination source is suppressed and only the guided-mode resonances are revealed. This method allows for a spatially resolved quality factor determination in the reciprocal space. As an example we scan a two-dimensional PCS and visualize its inhomogeneities. Although the resonance wavelength variations were only ≈3 nm, the quality factor varies from 100 to 350.

Sensitivity optimization of injection-molded photonic crystal slabs for biosensing applications

For label-free assays employing photonic crystal slabs (PCSs), the sensitivity is one of the most important properties influencing the detection limit. We investigate the bulk sensitivity and the surface sensitivity of 24 different PCSs fabricated by injection molding of PMMA and subsequent sputtering of a Ta2O5 high-index layer. The duty cycle of the linear grating is varied in steps of 0.1 between 0.2 and 0.7. Four different Ta2O5 layer thicknesses (89 nm, 99 nm, 189 nm, 301 nm) are deposited. Both bulk and surface sensitivity are optimal for a Ta2O5 layer thickness of 99 nm. The maximum bulk sensitivity of 138 nm/RIU is achieved for a duty cycle of 0.7, while the maximum surface sensitivity of 47 nm/RIU is obtained for a duty cycle of 0.5. Good agreement between experimental results and finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations is observed. The PCSs sensitivity is linked to the mode intensity distribution.

Intensity interrogation near cutoff resonance for label-free cellular profiling

We report a method enabling intensity-based readout for label-free cellular assays, and realize a reader device with the same footprint as a microtiter plate. For unambiguous resonance intensity measurements in resonance waveguide grating (RWG) sensors, we propose to apply resonances near the substrate cutoff wavelength. This method was validated in bulk refractive index, surface bilayer and G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) experiments. The significantly reduced size of the reader device opens new opportunities for easy integration into incubators or liquid handling systems.

Material-based three-dimensional imaging with nanostructured surfaces

Visualizing three-dimensional (3D) structures at the micrometer and nanometer scale is essential not only for characterizing materials and corrosion but also biological samples. Here, we present a material-based nano-optical method using the near-field properties of periodically nanostructured surfaces (photonic crystal slabs) to obtain 3D images. The wavelength and the quality factor of resonances in the transmission spectrum provide optical thickness information of objects on the surface, which we use for rapid topography determination of cells.

Visual device for pressure measurement using photonic crystal slabs

We propose and demonstrate a visual, all-optical pressure-measuring device composed of a flexible membrane dilating toward a photonic crystal slab. Due to its transparency and capability to be miniaturized, it may be integrated on the inner side of an artificial lens and directly measure the eyes intraocular pressure. Using crossed polarization filters for the readout process, we obtain a contrast enhancement for the circular contact area of the membrane with the photonic crystal slab. We demonstrate that the visible circle increases as a function of pressure.

Photonic crystal slabs for surface contrast enhancement in microscopy of transparent objects

In optical microscopy the contrast of transparent objects achieved with conventional methods is often not satisfactory, for example for the automated recognition of cells. In this paper we present a nano-optical label-free approach for contrast enhancement based on photonic crystal slabs (PCS) as the specimen holder. Quasi-guided modes inside these structures cause an intrinsic color of the PCS, which strongly depends on the wavelength and the quality factor of the optical mode. Objects on the surface of the PCS experience a significant color and intensity contrast enhancement, as they change properties of the optical modes.