Development and application of advanced optical techniques

We have developed several microscopes able to track in real time the random (Brownian) motion of such particles in 3D. We have shown that this tracking can be used to characterize the particle itself (size, chemical behavior, etc…), or its local environment (chemical composition, optical properties, etc…).

More recently, a system has been developed to use this localization information to drive an adaptive optical system which redirects the light scattered by a moving particle towards a spectrometer, allowing long spectral acquisitions even on small, weakly scattering objects. All these aspects are backed by optical and thermal modeling and completed with numerical simulations.

In addition, several members of the team have a strong background in photothermal sciences: systems developed in the team for high resolution temperature imaging or thermal properties measurements are now routinely used in the lab. A thermal endoscope has recently been developed to measure local temperatures in-vivo.

Research areas

• Digital holographic microscopy, and spectroscopy of micro- and nanostructures.
• Fluorescence, scattering or Raman spectroscopy of still or moving nano-objects.
• Quantitative phase contrast imaging and label-free 3D microscopy and instrumental developments.
• Thermal characterization.