I will be at the next international conference on surface plasmon photonics, to be hold June 21-26 in Amsterdam : http://www.spp4.org/

Meet you after my talk O-02 “Merging fluorescence correlation spectroscopy and plasmonics:

characterizing nanostructures for high rate high efficiency single molecule detection” on Monday 22^nd, 10AM.

Published in Optics Express, freely downloadable at :

http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-17-4-2089

We show that latex microspheres are able to confine light in a three-dimensional region of subwavelength dimensions. A simple configuration, not involving resonances, allows to reach an effective volume as small as 0.6 (lambda/n)^3, hereby beating the far-field diffraction barrier. We relate this phenomenon to interferences between the field scattered by the sphere and the incident Gaussian beam.

The animated gif below shows the electric field intensity distribution while the microsphere is displaced towards the focus of the incident laser beam.

This paper was highlighted as picture of the week on Optics Infobase webpage, and (consequently?) ranked 6^th out of the most downloaded OSA paper of March 2009.

We are pleased to organize the next Carl Zeiss sponsored workshop on fluorescence correlation spectroscopy and related methods. The workshop will take place at Cargese (Corsica, France) from October 12^th – 16^th 2009.

Check the workshop website for more information : www.fresnel.fr/FCS

As a member of the organizing committee, I’m pleased to announce the forthcoming summer school on Plasmonics that will bring together the European specialists of Plasmonics on Porquerolles island (Côte d'Azur, France) from the 13th to the 17th of september 2009.

Invited lecturers and topics:

Plasmonic theory:  D. Maytre, J. J. Greffet, P. Lalanne

Experimental methods: G. Lerondel, A. Bouhelier, R. Quidant

Localized plasmons: F. J. Garcia de Abajo, J. Aizpurua

Controlling light: T. W. Ebbesen, A. Zayats, L. K. Kuipers

Plasmonic components: A. Polman, A. Dereux

Novel materials and designs: N. Zheludev, C. Cibila

Complete information on http://www.fresnel.fr/spip/spip.php?rubrique171

Please note the abstract submission deadline is April 30^th !

Still nothing concrete. That’s not really surprising, the thing that amazes me is that the movement is still alive.

See the excellent work of Sylvestre Huet on his blog : http://sciences.blogs.liberation.fr/