Operando monitoring transition dynamics of responsive polymer using optofluidic microcavities

Optical microcavities have become an attractive platform for precision measurement with merits of ultrahigh sensitivity, miniature footprint and fast response. Despite the achievements of ultrasensitive detection, optical microcavities still face significant challenges in the measurement of biochemi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Light, science & applications science & applications, 2021-06, Vol.10 (1), p.128-128, Article 128
Main Authors: Yang, Da-Quan, Chen, Jin-hui, Cao, Qi-Tao, Duan, Bing, Chen, Hao-Jing, Yu, Xiao-Chong, Xiao, Yun-Feng
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
140/125
639/624/1075/1083
639/624/1111/1117
639/624/399/1097
Applied and Technical Physics
Atomic
Classical and Continuum Physics
Hydrophobicity
Lasers
Molecular
Optical and Plasma Physics
Optical Devices
Optics
Phase transitions
Photonics
Physics
Physics and Astronomy
Polymers
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Summary:Optical microcavities have become an attractive platform for precision measurement with merits of ultrahigh sensitivity, miniature footprint and fast response. Despite the achievements of ultrasensitive detection, optical microcavities still face significant challenges in the measurement of biochemical and physical processes with complex dynamics, especially when multiple effects are present. Here we demonstrate operando monitoring of the transition dynamics of a phase-change material via a self-referencing optofluidic microcavity. We use a pair of cavity modes to precisely decouple the refractive index and temperature information of the analyte during the phase-transition process. Through real-time measurements, we reveal the detailed hysteresis behaviors of refractive index during the irreversible phase transitions between hydrophilic and hydrophobic states. We further extract the phase-transition threshold by analyzing the steady-state refractive index change at various power levels. Our technology could be further extended to other materials and provide great opportunities for exploring on-demand dynamic biochemical processes. Operando monitoring transition dynamics of responsive polymer via a self-referencing optofluidic microcavity is demonstrated. The refractive index and temperature information of the analyte during the phase-transition process are precisely decoupled.
ISSN:2047-7538
2095-5545
2047-7538
DOI:10.1038/s41377-021-00570-1