Name: label-free single molecule detection using microtoroid optical resonators
Uploaded: 2015-12-29T14:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Label-free Single Molecule Detection Using Microtoroid Optical Resonators at JoVE.com

This research was supported in part by a National Research Service Award (T32GM07616) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

1. Experimental Setup and Sample Preparation
<ol>
	<li>Fabricate microtoroids using the lithography, etching, and melting procedure as described previously6. Fabricate microtoroids on top of a silicon wafer (chip) that typically have a major diameter of 80-100 &#181;m, and a minor diameter of 2 &#181;m.</li>
	<li>Unwind roughly a meter of single-mode optical fiber (125 &#181;m cladding, 4.3 &#181;m mode field diameter) from its fiber spool.</li>
	<li>In the middle of the unwound portion of the optical fiber,...

<ol>
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As a particle binds, the resonance wavelength (&#955;) of the toroid increases. If a particle unbinds, the resonance wavelength correspondingly decreases (a step-down event). The particle diameter (d) may be determined through histograms of the amplitude of each wavelength step. The height of each wavelength step varies due to size variations of the bound particle and due to the location on the microtoroid where the particle binds. The maximum change in resonance wavelength (step height) occurs when par...

Single molecule detection experiments are useful for reducing the amount of analyte used in biosensors, for early detection of disease, and for examining the fundamental properties of molecules3. Such experiments are typically performed using labels, however, labels are not always possible to obtain for a particular protein, increase cost, can perturb the events being studied, and can be inconvenient, particularly for real time on-site experiments or point-of-care diagnostics.
The current gold standard for label-free biosensing is surface plasmon resonance4, however the commercial surface plasmon resonance systems typically have a typical lower limit of detection on the order of nM. Recently, optical resonators have emerged as a promising technology for label-free single molecule biodetection5. Optical resonators work based on the long-term (ns) confinement of light6,7. Light is evanescently coupled into these devices typically via an optical fiber. When the wavelength of the light going through the fiber matches the resonance wavelength of the resonator, light efficiently couples to the resonator. This coupled light totally internally reflects within the resonator&#39;s cavity generating an evanescent field in the vicinity of the circumference of the resonator. As particles enter the evanescent field and bind to the resonator, the resonance wavelength of the resonator changes in proportion to the volume of the particle8.
In terms of detection capability, microsphere resonators have earlier been used to detect single influenza A virus particles (100 nm)9,10. Recently, plasmonically-enhanced microsphere optical resonators have been used to detect single bovine serum albumin molecules11 and 8-mer oligonucleotides12, however this approach limits the particle capture area to 0.3 &#181;m2 per device. Larger capture area biosensors are ideal for maximizing the chance of particle detection. Current solution-based label-free biosensing technologies with large (&#62; 100 &#181;m2) capture areas have been limited to detecting polystyrene particles &#8805; 25 nm.
We have developed a label-free biosensing system based on optical resonator technology known as Frequency Locking Optical Whispering Evanescent Resonator (FLOWER)13 (Figure 1) that is capable of time-resolved detection of single molecules in solution. FLOWER uses the long photon lifetime of microtoroid optical resonators combined with frequency locking feedback control, balanced detection, and computational filtering to detect small particles down to single protein molecules. The use of frequency locking allows the system to always track the shifting resonance of the microtoroid as particles bind, without the need to sweep or scan the laser wavelength over large ranges. The principles of FLOWER may be used to enhance the detection capabilities of other techniques including plasmonic enhancement. In what follows, the procedures for performing FLOWER are described.

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	<tbody>
		<tr height="20" style="height:15.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height:15.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Tunable diode laser</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Newport</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">TLB-6300</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20" style="height:15.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height:15.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Laser controller</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Newport</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">TLB-6300-LN</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Frequency locking feedback controller</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Toptica Photonics</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Digilock 110</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Auto-balanced photoreceiver</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Newport</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Model 2007</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">In-line polarization controller</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">General Photonics</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">PLC-003-S-90</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">24-bit data acquisition card</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">National Instruments</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">NI-PCI-4461</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="60" style="height:45.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="60" style="height:45.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Recombinant human interleukin-2</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Pierce Biotechnology</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">R201520</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">20 nm polystyrene beads</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">3020A</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">NanoCube XYZ Piezo Stage</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Physik Instrumente</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">P-611.3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20" style="height:15.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="20" style="height:15.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Optical table</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Newport</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">VH3660W-OPT</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Objective lens for imaging column</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Navitar Machine Vision</td>
			<td class="xl64">1-60228</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="40" style="height:30.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="40" style="height:30.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">Imaging column (adaptor tube)</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Navitar Machine Vision</td>
			<td class="xl65">1-60228</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="60" style="height:45.0pt">
			<td class="xl63" height="60" style="height:45.0pt;width:99pt" width="132">High-Res CCD camera for imaging column</td>
			<td class="xl63" style="width:99pt" width="132">Edmund Industrial Optics</td>
			<td class="xl64">NT39244</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

label-free single molecule detection using microtoroid optical resonators

Detecting small concentrations of molecules down to the single molecule limit has impact on areas such as early detection of disease, and fundamental studies on the behavior of molecules. Single molecule detection techniques commonly utilize labels such as fluorescent tags or quantum dots, however, labels are not always available, increase cost and complexity, and can perturb the events being studied. Optical resonators have emerged as a promising means to detect single molecules without the use of labels. Currently the smallest particle detected by a non-plasmonically-enhanced bare optical resonator system in solution is a 25 nm polystyrene sphere1. We have developed a technique known as Frequency Locking Optical Whispering Evanescent Resonator (FLOWER) that can surpass this limit and achieve label-free single molecule detection in aqueous solution2. As signal strength scales with particle volume, our work represents a &#62; 100x improvement in the signal to noise ratio (SNR) over the current state of the art. Here the procedures behind FLOWER are presented in an effort to increase its usage in the field.

Particle binding events are clearly seen as step-like changes in the resonance wavelength of the microtoroid over time (Figure 2A). The heights of these steps are shown as a histogram in Figure 2B. Figures 2-4 show representative traces from the binding of exosomes (nanovesicles), 5 nm silica beads, and single human interleukin-2 molecules, respectively. The fact that the step-like events scale with particle size shows that the technique has been performed correctly. Thi...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Label-free Single Molecule Detection Using Microtoroid Optical Resonators at JoVE.com

Label-free Single Molecule Detection Using Microtoroid Optical Resonators

We have developed a label-free biosensing system based on optical resonator technology known as Frequency Locking Optical Whispering Evanescent Resonator (FLOWER) that is capable of detecting single molecules in solution. Here the procedures behind this work are described and presented.

Detecting small concentrations of molecules down to the single molecule limit has impact on areas such as early detection of disease, and fundamental ...

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