In the magazine: portable single molecule fluorescence sensor

14 Octobre 2010 , Rédigé par JW Publié dans #Recent research work

Following up with the story of the smallest single molecule detection apparatus ever, and first portable FCS system with true single molecule routine sensitivity, my team has recently published a technical note in the Spectra Analyse magazine. This is also an introduction as to why fluorescence correlation spectroscopy is a powerful method to extend standard fluorescence spetroscopies. A free reprint can be found here.

Summary: Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a versatile method that would greatly benefit to remote optical fiber fluorescence sensors. However, the current state-of-the-art struggles with low detection sensitivities that prevent the extension of fiber-based FCS down to the single-molecule level. Here we describe a novel probe based on an optical fiber combined with a dielectric microsphere to perform FCS analysis down to the single fluorescent molecule level. This offers new opportunities for reducing the bulky microscope setup and extends FCS to remote or in vivo applications.