Events Calendar

Photonics Seminar Series

Speaker: Prof. Ofer Levi, University of Toronto

Talk Title: Integrated optical sensors for portable biomedical sensing and imaging

Abstract: Optical techniques are widely used in clinical settings and in biomedical research labs to interrogate bio-molecular interactions and evaluate tissue dynamics. Miniature integrated optical systems for sensing and imaging enjoy several advantages over bulk optical systems. These include portable long-term studies in living tissues, lower cost, higher speed, while keeping high sensitivity.

In this presentation I will review our miniature semiconductor-based sensors and nano-structures for optical bio-sensing and bio-medical imaging. I will discuss our progress in design, fabrication and optimization of miniature fluorescence and index-of-refraction optical bio-sensors. In optofluidics studies for Lab on a Chip diagnosis applications, we have recently demonstrated sensitive fluorescence sensors (~ 1 nMolar) equal to or better than state-of-the-art miniature optical sensors and studied large area label-free photonic crystal slab (PCS) index-of-refraction sensors (Δn ≤ 10^-5). I will also describe our progress towards portable implantable optical sensors in freely-moving rodents in (i) applying Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) as coherent/incoherent light sources for portable optical brain imaging and (ii) implanting VCSEL/PIN diode miniature fluorescence sensors in mice for portable long-term cancer monitoring.

Biography: Ofer Levi is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering and the Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the University of Toronto since 2007. In 2000-2007 Dr. Levi worked as a Post Doctoral Fellow and a Research Associate at the Departments of Applied Physics and Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, CA. He is a member of OSA, IEEE-Photonics, and SPIE. His recent research areas include biomedical imaging systems and optical bio-sensors based on semiconductor devices and nano-structures, and their application to bio-medical diagnostics, in vivo imaging, and study of bio-molecular interactions. More details can be found at http://biophotonics.utoronto.ca/

Host: Prof. Michelle Povinelli

More Info: http://ee.usc.edu/news/seminars/photonics/

Location: Seaver Science Library (SSL) - 150

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Jing Ma

Event Link: http://ee.usc.edu/news/seminars/photonics/