The Boston University Photonics Center annual report 2013-2014

This repository item contains an annual report that summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2013-2014 academic year. The report provides quantitative and descriptive information regarding photonics programs in education, interdisciplinary research, business innovation, and technology development. The Boston University Photonics Center (BUPC) is an interdisciplinary hub for education, research, scholarship, innovation, and technology development associated with practical uses of light.This annual report summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2013–2014 academic year.This has been a good year for the Photonics Center. In the following pages, you will see that the center’s faculty received prodigious honors and awards, generated more than 100 notable scholarly publications in the leading journals in our field, and attracted $14.5M in new research grants and contracts this year. Faculty and staff also expanded their efforts in education and training, through National Science Foundation–sponsored sites for Research Experiences for Undergraduates and for Teachers. As a community, we hosted a compelling series of distinguished invited speakers, and emphasized the theme of Innovations at the Intersections of Micro/Nanofabrication Technology, Biology, and Biomedicine at our annual Future of Light Symposium. We took a leadership role in running national workshops on emerging photonic fields, including an OSA Incubator on Controlled Light Propagation through Complex Media, and an NSF Workshop on Noninvasive Imaging of Brain Function. Highlights of our research achievements for the year include a distinctive Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) for Assistant Professor Xue Han, an ambitious new DoD-sponsored grant for Multi-Scale Multi-Disciplinary Modeling of Electronic Materials led by Professor Enrico Bellotti, launch of our NIH-sponsored Center for Innovation in Point of Care Technologies for the Future of Cancer Care led by Professor Cathy Klapperich, and successful completion of the ambitious IARPA-funded contract for Next Generation Solid Immersion Microscopy for Fault Isolation in Back-Side Circuit Analysis led by Professor Bennett Goldberg. These three programs, which represent more than$20M in research funding for the University, are indicative of the breadth of Photonics Center research interests: from fundamental modeling of optoelectronic materials to practical development of cancer diagnostics, from exciting new discoveries in optogenetics for understanding brain function to the achievement of world-record resolution in semiconductor circuit microscopy. Our community welcomed an auspicious cohort of new faculty members, including a newly hired assistant professor and a newly hired professor (and Chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department). The Industry/University Cooperative Research Center—the centerpiece of our translational biophotonics program—continues to focus on advancing the health care and medical device industries, and has entered its fourth year of operation with a strong record of achievement and with the support of an enthusiastic industrial membership base

The Boston University Photonics Center annual report 2013-2014

This repository item contains an annual report that summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2013-2014 academic year. The report provides quantitative and descriptive information regarding photonics programs in education, interdisciplinary research, business innovation, and technology development. The Boston University Photonics Center (BUPC) is an interdisciplinary hub for education, research, scholarship, innovation, and technology development associated with practical uses of light.This annual report summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2013–2014 academic year.This has been a good year for the Photonics Center. In the following pages, you will see that the center’s faculty received prodigious honors and awards, generated more than 100 notable scholarly publications in the leading journals in our field, and attracted $14.5M in new research grants and contracts this year. Faculty and staff also expanded their efforts in education and training, through National Science Foundation–sponsored sites for Research Experiences for Undergraduates and for Teachers. As a community, we hosted a compelling series of distinguished invited speakers, and emphasized the theme of Innovations at the Intersections of Micro/Nanofabrication Technology, Biology, and Biomedicine at our annual Future of Light Symposium. We took a leadership role in running national workshops on emerging photonic fields, including an OSA Incubator on Controlled Light Propagation through Complex Media, and an NSF Workshop on Noninvasive Imaging of Brain Function. Highlights of our research achievements for the year include a distinctive Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) for Assistant Professor Xue Han, an ambitious new DoD-sponsored grant for Multi-Scale Multi-Disciplinary Modeling of Electronic Materials led by Professor Enrico Bellotti, launch of our NIH-sponsored Center for Innovation in Point of Care Technologies for the Future of Cancer Care led by Professor Cathy Klapperich, and successful completion of the ambitious IARPA-funded contract for Next Generation Solid Immersion Microscopy for Fault Isolation in Back-Side Circuit Analysis led by Professor Bennett Goldberg. These three programs, which represent more than$20M in research funding for the University, are indicative of the breadth of Photonics Center research interests: from fundamental modeling of optoelectronic materials to practical development of cancer diagnostics, from exciting new discoveries in optogenetics for understanding brain function to the achievement of world-record resolution in semiconductor circuit microscopy. Our community welcomed an auspicious cohort of new faculty members, including a newly hired assistant professor and a newly hired professor (and Chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department). The Industry/University Cooperative Research Center—the centerpiece of our translational biophotonics program—continues to focus on advancing the health care and medical device industries, and has entered its fourth year of operation with a strong record of achievement and with the support of an enthusiastic industrial membership base

Experimentation and Multiphysical Modeling of Bioanalytical Microdevices

Bioanalytics involves quantitative measurements of complex biological samples that contain metabolites, DNA, RNA, and proteins. Efficient sample preparation for downstream analysis and sensitive detection of analytes can be achieved via bioanalytical microdevices. Fully realizing the potential of these devices requires tool characterization and bioprocess optimization, in addition to understanding device physics. Therefore, this thesis introduces multiphysical modeling and experimentation of microdevices, with applications to diabetes care and single-cell analysis. To understand the physics of viscometric glucose microsensors, this thesis presents a model of the sensor, which couples the fluid flow with vibrating diaphragms. The model is used to predict the sensor response to glucose via theory of squeeze-film damping and vibrations of pre-stressed plate. A first-principle-based model resulting from the theory can be evaluated from the device's geometric and material properties, and quantitatively determines the device response to vibrational excitations at varying glucose concentrations. Next, this thesis introduces a theoretical model for viscometric glucose microsensors that employ harmonic microcantilever oscillation in the sensing liquid. The presented model associates the unsteady Stokes equation with the motion of a bounded viscous liquid to understand the hydrodynamic impact on the cantilever. With a proper consideration of the viscosity and bounded geometry of liquid media, the model relaxes the thin-film assumption required for the diaphragm-based model, enabling an accurate representation of fluid-structure interactions based on fundamental structural vibration and fluid flow equations. Next, this thesis presents an experimental exploration of a hydrogel-based affinity microsensor for glucose monitoring via dielectric measurements. The microsensor incorporates a synthetic hydrogel that is attached to the device surface via in situ polymerization, which eliminates mechanical moving parts required in the viscometric glucose sensors. Changes in the dielectric properties of the hydrogel when binding reversibly with glucose molecules have been measured using a MEMS capacitive transducer to determine the glucose concentration. Experimental results demonstrate that in a glucose concentration range of 0–500 mg/dL and with a resolution of 0.35 mg/dL or better, the microsensor exhibits a repeatable and reversible response, and can potentially be useful for continuous glucose monitoring in diabetes care. Additionally, this thesis presents a microfluidic preprocessing method that integrates single-cell picking, lysing, reverse transcription and digital polymerase chain reaction to enable the isolation, tracking and gene expression analysis at single-cell level for individual cells. The approach utilizes a photocleavable bead-based microfluidic device to synthesize and deliver stable complementary DNA for downstream gene expression analysis, thereby allowing chip-based integration of multiple reactions and facilitating the minimization of sample loss or contamination. Finally, this thesis ends with concluding remarks and directions of future work towards continuous glucose monitoring and high-throughput single-cell genetic analysis

Label-Free Biochemical Recognition Using MEMS Resonators for Microarray Technology

Highly sensitive biosensors capable of detecting and characterizing smallest quantities of cellular and molecular targets are needed in pharmaceutical and medical diagnostics industries. In this work, the importance of biological target recognition specifically proteins through microarray technologies has been discussed and the most successful tools and techniques have been studied. Moreover, a thermally actuated Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) resonator has been demonstrated and fabricated in this work as an accurate, reliable and low cost biotechnology tool. As a proof of concept, amine to epoxide coupling of octadecylamine to functionalized silicon dioxide surface have been shown through resonator frequency monitoring. The frequency deviation of the sensors implied a meaningful surface coverage after analyte immobilization. Furthermore, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of the devices at different stages of the surface modification supported that the frequency deviations are due to epoxide and octadecylamine attachments. In addition, two surface passivation techniques against non-specific adsorption of avidin have been investigated on silicon surface

The Boston University Photonics Center annual report 2016-2017

This repository item contains an annual report that summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2016-2017 academic year. The report provides quantitative and descriptive information regarding photonics programs in education, interdisciplinary research, business innovation, and technology development. The Boston University Photonics Center (BUPC) is an interdisciplinary hub for education, research, scholarship, innovation, and technology development associated with practical uses of light.This has undoubtedly been the Photonics Center’s best year since I became Director 10 years ago. In the following pages, you will see highlights of the Center’s activities in the past year, including more than 100 notable scholarly publications in the leading journals in our field, and the attraction of more than 22 million dollars in new research grants/contracts. Last year I had the honor to lead an international search for the first recipient of the Moustakas Endowed Professorship in Optics and Photonics, in collaboration with ECE Department Chair Clem Karl. This professorship honors the Center’s most impactful scholar and one of the Center’s founding visionaries, Professor Theodore Moustakas. We are delighted to haveawarded this professorship to Professor Ji-Xin Cheng, who joined our faculty this year.The past year also marked the launch of Boston University’s Neurophotonics Center, which will be allied closely with the Photonics Center. Leading that Center will be a distinguished new faculty member, Professor David Boas. David and I are together leading a new Neurophotonics NSF Research Traineeship Program that will provide $3M to promote graduate traineeships in this emerging new field. We had a busy summer hosting NSF Sites for Research Experiences for Undergraduates, Research Experiences for Teachers, and the BU Student Satellite Program. As a community, we emphasized the theme of “Optics of Cancer Imaging” at our annual symposium, hosted by Darren Roblyer. We entered a five-year second phase of NSF funding in our Industry/University Collaborative Research Center on Biophotonic Sensors and Systems, which has become the centerpiece of our translational biophotonics program. That I/UCRC continues to focus on advancing the health care and medical device industries

Developing an Optomechanical Approach for Characterizing Mechanical Properties of Single Adherent Cells

Mechanical properties of a cell reflect its biological and pathological conditions including cellular disorders and fundamental cellular processes such as cell division and differentiation. There have been active research efforts to develop high-throughput platforms to mechanically characterize single cells. Yet, many of these research efforts are focused on suspended cells and use a flow-through configuration. Therefore, adherent cells are detached prior to the characterization, which seriously perturbs the cellular conditions. Also, methods for adherent cells are limited in their throughput. My study is aimed to fill the technical gap in the field of single cell analysis, which is a high-throughput and non-invasive mechanical characterization of single adherent cells. I developed a multi-modal platform to mechanically characterize single adherent cells. The platform is based on optomechanical principle, which induces least perturbation on the cells and does not require cell detachment. Besides, multiple measurements can be performed on a single cell to track its mechanical behavior over time. Proposed platform can expand our understanding on the relationship between mechanical properties and cellular status of adherent cells. Single adherent cells are characterized optomechanically using the vibration-induced phase shift (VIPS). VIPS is a phase shift of apparent velocity of a vertically vibrating substrate measured with laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV), when the measurement laser passes through an adherent cell or any transparent objects on the substrate. The VIPS and height oscillation of a single cell on a vibrating substrate have negative correlation with the cell stiffness. An analytical model is established which demonstrates relationship between cell’s mechanical properties and its VIPS. With the VIPS measurements, at multiple frequencies on large population of cells, the statistical significant difference in the cell stiffness is confirmed after exposure to various drugs affecting cytoskeleton network. Also, a 3-dimensional finite element model is developed to extract the cell stiffness from VIPS. VIPS technique is used to reconstruct the detailed oscillation pattern of transparent objects such as water microdroplets and intracellular lipid droplets on a vibrating substrate, which can give us better understanding of mechanical behavior of biological transparent objects. In addition, using VIPS measurement mechanical interaction between extracellular matrixes (ECMs) and adherent cells is studied. Statistical significant difference in bonding straight of single cells and different ECMs is demonstrated

Bioengineered Textiles and Nonwovens – the convergence of bio-miniaturisation and electroactive conductive polymers for assistive healthcare, portable power and design-led wearable technology

Today, there is an opportunity to bring together creative design activities to exploit the responsive and adaptive ‘smart’ materials that are a result of rapid development in electro, photo active polymers or OFEDs (organic thin film electronic devices), bio-responsive hydrogels, integrated into MEMS/NEMS devices and systems respectively. Some of these integrated systems are summarised in this paper, highlighting their use to create enhanced functionality in textiles, fabrics and non-woven large area thin films. By understanding the characteristics and properties of OFEDs and bio polymers and how they can be transformed into implementable physical forms, innovative products and services can be developed, with wide implications. The paper outlines some of these opportunities and applications, in particular, an ambient living platform, dealing with human centred needs, of people at work, people at home and people at play. The innovative design affords the accelerated development of intelligent materials (interactive, responsive and adaptive) for a new product & service design landscape, encompassing assistive healthcare (smart bandages and digital theranostics), ambient living, renewable energy (organic PV and solar textiles), interactive consumer products, interactive personal & beauty care (e-Scent) and a more intelligent built environment

Novel miniaturised and highly versatile biomechatronic platforms for the characterisation of melanoma cancer cells

There has been an increasing demand to acquire highly sensitive devices that are able to detect and characterize cancer at a single cell level. Despite the moderate progress in this field, the majority of approaches failed to reach cell characterization with optimal sensitivity and specificity. Accordingly, in this study highly sensitive, miniaturized-biomechatronic platforms have been modeled, designed, optimized, microfabricated, and characterized, which can be used to detect and differentiate various stages of melanoma cancer cells. The melanoma cell has been chosen as a legitimate cancer model, where electrophysiological and analytical expression of cell-membrane potential have been derived, and cellular contractile force has been obtained through a correlation with micromechanical deflections of a miniaturized cantilever beam. The main objectives of this study are in fourfold: (1) to quantify cell-membrane potential, (2) correlate cellular biophysics to respective contractile force of a cell in association with various stages of the melanoma disease, (3) examine the morphology of each stage of melanoma, and (4) arrive at a relation that would interrelate stage of the disease, cellular contractile force, and cellular electrophysiology based on conducted in vitro experimental findings. Various well-characterized melanoma cancer cell lines, with varying degrees of genetic complexities have been utilized. In this study, two-miniaturized-versatile-biomechatronic platforms have been developed to extract the electrophysiology of cells, and cellular mechanics (mechanobiology). The former platform consists of a microfluidic module, and stimulating and recording array of electrodes patterned on a glass substrate, forming multi-electrode arrays (MEAs), whereas the latter system consists of a microcantilever-based biosensor with an embedded Wheatstone bridge, and a microfluidic module. Furthermore, in support of this work main objectives, dedicated microelectronics together with customized software have been attained to functionalize, and empower the two-biomechatronic platforms. The bio-mechatronic system performance has been tested throughout a sufficient number of in vitro experiments.Open Acces

Placental mesenchymal stem cell sheets: motivation for bio-MEMS device to create patient matched myocardial patches

Congenital heart defects are the number one cause of birth defect-related deaths. Cardiovascular diseases are the most common cause of death worldwide. Layered cellular sheet constructs offer one very valuable option for cardiac patch implantation during surgical treatment of both pediatric and adult patients with cardiac defects or damage. A very exciting, relatively unexplored, autologous, available cell source for making patches are placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells (pMSCs). In this study, pMSCs were assessed as a potential cell source for cardiac repair and regeneration by evaluating their differentiation capacity into cardiomyocytes, their effects on cardiac cell migration and proliferation, and their ability to be grown into cell sheets. It was found that pMSC cardiac protein content was enhanced by differentiation media treatment, but no beating cells were produced. Undifferentiated pMSCs improved migration and proliferation of a cardiac cell population and formed intact, aligned cell sheets. However, like many new cell sources for cardiac repair, pMSCs should still be functionally characterized to understand how compatible they will be with resident heart tissue. Implanting non-autologous, potentially pluripotent, non-myocyte (non-beating) cells presents concerns regarding electromechanical mismatch and implant rejection. The characterization of non-traditional cell sources such as pMSCs motivated the design of a bio-MEMS device that assesses contractile force and conduction velocity in response to electrical and mechanical stimulation of a cell source as it is grown and once it forms a cellular sheet. This ideally creates the ability for patient specific cell sheets to be cultured, characterized, and conditioned to be compatible with the patient’s cardiac environment in vitro, prior to implantation. In this work, the device was designed to achieve the following: cellular alignment, electrical stimulation, mechanical stimulation, conduction velocity readout, contraction force readout, and upon characterization, cell sheet release. The platform is based on a set of comb electrical contacts which are three dimensional wall contacts made of polydimethylsiloxane and coated with electrically conductive metals. Device fabrication and initial validation experiments were completed as part of this study; ultimately the device will allow for the complete functional characterization and conditioning of variable cell source cell sheet implants for myocardial implantation.2019-07-02T00:00:00

Cell Culture on MEMS Platforms: A Review

Microfabricated systems provide an excellent platform for the culture of cells, and are an extremely useful tool for the investigation of cellular responses to various stimuli. Advantages offered over traditional methods include cost-effectiveness, controllability, low volume, high resolution, and sensitivity. Both biocompatible and bioincompatible materials have been developed for use in these applications. Biocompatible materials such as PMMA or PLGA can be used directly for cell culture. However, for bioincompatible materials such as silicon or PDMS, additional steps need to be taken to render these materials more suitable for cell adhesion and maintenance. This review describes multiple surface modification strategies to improve the biocompatibility of MEMS materials. Basic concepts of cell-biomaterial interactions, such as protein adsorption and cell adhesion are covered. Finally, the applications of these MEMS materials in Tissue Engineering are presented.Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (Singapore)Singapore. Biomedical Research CouncilSingapore. Agency for Science, Technology and ResearchSingapore. Agency for Science, Technology and Research (R-185-001-045-305)Singapore. Ministry of EducationSingapore. Ministry of Education (Grant R-185- 000-135-112)Singapore. National Medical Research CouncilSingapore. National Medical Research Council (Grant R-185-000-099-213)Jassen Cilag (Firm)Singapore-MIT Alliance (Computational and Systems Biology Flagship Project)Global Enterprise for Micro-Mechanics and Molecular Medicin