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  4. Vahid Sandoghdar

Prof. Vahid Sandoghdar

  • Director
  • Head of Nano-Optics Division

The research of our group aims to advance experimental and theoretical mastery of light-matter interaction at the nanometer scale and to achieve the same degree of control and finesse that is known from the gas-phase quantum optics in the condensed phase. To do this, we combine concepts from quantum optics, laser spectroscopy, cryogenics, optical imaging, scanning probe technology and nanofluidics. In this endeavour, we have addressed a wide spectrum of scientific questions, ranging from quantum optics to biophysics. For more information, please consult our research website and our list of publications.

2016

Compartmentalization and Transport in Synthetic Vesicles

Christine Schmitt, Anna H. Lippert, Navid Bonakdar, Vahid Sandoghdar, Lars M. Voll

Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 4 19 (2016) | Journal

Nanoscale vesicles have become a popular tool in life sciences. Besides liposomes that are generated from phospholipids of natural origin, polymersomes fabricated of synthetic block copolymers enjoy increasing popularity, as they represent more versatile membrane building blocks that can be selected based on their specific physicochemical properties, such as permeability, stability, or chemical reactivity. In this review, we focus on the application of simple and nested artificial vesicles in synthetic biology. First, we provide an introduction into the utilization of multicompartmented vesosomes as compartmentalized nanoscale bioreactors. In the bottom-up development of protocells from vesicular nanoreactors, the specific exchange of pathway intermediates across compartment boundaries represents a bottleneck for future studies. To date, most compartmented bioreactors rely on unspecific exchange of substrates and products. This is either based on changes in permeability of the coblock polymer shell by physicochemical triggers or by the incorporation of unspecific porin proteins into the vesicle membrane. Since the incorporation of membrane transport proteins into simple and nested artificial vesicles offers the potential for specific exchange of substances between subcompartments, it opens new vistas in the design of protocells. Therefore, we devote the main part of the review to summarize the technical advances in the use of phospholipids and block copolymers for the reconstitution of membrane proteins.

Polaritonic normal-mode splitting and light localization in a one-dimensional nanoguide

Harald R. Haakh, Sanli Faez, Vahid Sandoghdar

Physical Review A 94 053840 (2016) | Journal

We theoretically investigate the interaction of light and a collection of emitters in a subwavelength one-dimensional medium (nanoguide), where enhanced emitter-photon coupling leads to efficient multiple scattering of photons. We show that the spectrum of the transmitted light undergoes normal-mode splitting even though no external cavity resonance is employed. By considering densities much higher than those encountered in cold atom experiments, we study the influence of the near-field dipole coupling and disorder on the resulting complex super-radiant and subradiant polaritonic states. In particular, we provide evidence for the longitudinal localization of light in a one-dimensional open system and provide a polaritonic phase diagram. Our results motivate a number of experiments, where new coherent superposition states of light and matter can be realized in the solid state.

Spectroscopy and microscopy of single molecules in nanoscopic channels: spectral behavior vs. confinement depth

Benjamin Gmeiner, Andreas Maser, Tobias Utikal, Stephan Goetzinger, Vahid Sandoghdar

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 18 19588-19594 (2016) | Journal

We perform high-resolution spectroscopy and localization microscopy to study single dye molecules confined to nanoscopic dimensions in one direction. We provide the fabrication details of our nanoscopic glass channels and the procedure for filling them with organic matrices. Optical data on hundreds of molecules in different channel depths show a clear trend from narrow stable lines in deep channels to broader linewidths in ultrathin matrices. In addition, we observe a steady blue shift of the center of the inhomogeneous band as the channels become thinner. Furthermore, we use super-resolution localization microscopy to correlate the positions and orientations of the individual dye molecules with the lateral landscape of the organic matrix, including cracks and strain-induced dislocations. Our results and methodology are useful for a number of studies in various fields such as physical chemistry, solid-state spectroscopy, and quantum nano-optics.

Visualization of lipids and proteins at high spatial and temporal resolution via interferometric scattering (iSCAT) microscopy

Susann Spindler, Jens Ehrig, Katharina Koenig, Tristan Nowak, Marek Piliarik, Hannah E. Stein, Richard W. Taylor, Elisabeth Garanger, Sebastien Lecommandoux, et al.

Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics 49 349601 (2016) | Journal

Microscopy based on the interferometric detection of light scattered from nanoparticles (iSCAT) was introduced in our laboratory more than a decade ago. In this work, we present various capabilities of iSCAT for biological studies by discussing a selection of our recent results. In particular, we show tracking of lipid molecules in supported lipid bilayers (SLBs), tracking of gold nanoparticles with diameters as small as 5 nm and at frame rates close to 1 MHz, 3D tracking of Tat peptide-coated nanoparticles on giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs), imaging the formation of lipid bilayers, sensing single unlabelled proteins and tracking their motion under electric fields, as well as challenges of studying live cell membranes. These studies set the ground for future quantitative research on dynamic biophysical processes at the nanometer scale.

Visualization and ligand-induced modulation of dopamine receptor dimerization at the single molecule level

Alina Tabor, Siegfried Weisenburger, Ashutosh Banerjee, Nirupam Purkayastha, Jonas M. Kaindl, Harald Huebner, Luxi Wei, Teja W. Groemer, Johannes Kornhuber, et al.

Scientific Reports 6 33233 (2016) | Journal

G protein–coupled receptors (GPCRs), including dopamine receptors, represent a group of important pharmacological targets. An increased formation of dopamine receptor D2 homodimers has been suggested to be associated with the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Selective labeling and ligand-induced modulation of dimerization may therefore allow the investigation of the pathophysiological role of these dimers. Using TIRF microscopy at the single molecule level, transient formation of homodimers of dopamine receptors in the membrane of stably transfected CHO cells has been observed. The equilibrium between dimers and monomers was modulated by the binding of ligands; whereas antagonists showed a ratio that was identical to that of unliganded receptors, agonist-bound D2 receptor-ligand complexes resulted in an increase in dimerization. Addition of bivalent D2 receptor ligands also resulted in a large increase in D2 receptor dimers. A physical interaction between the protomers was confirmed using high resolution cryogenic localization microscopy, with ca. 9 nm between the centers of mass.

Visualization of lipids and proteins at high spatial and temporal resolution via interferometric scattering (iSCAT) microscopy

Susann Spindler, Jens Ehrig, Katharina König, Tristan Nowak, Marek Piliarik, Hannah E. Stein, Richard W. Taylor, Elisabeth Garanger, Sebastien Lecommandoux, et al.

Journal of Physics D - Applied Physics 49 274002 (2016) | Journal

Microscopy based on the interferometric detection of light scattered from nanoparticles (iSCAT) was introduced in our laboratory more than a decade ago. In this work, we present various capabilities of iSCAT for biological studies by discussing a selection of our recent results. In particular, we show tracking of lipid molecules in supported lipid bilayers (SLBs), tracking of gold nanoparticles with diameters as small as 5 nm and at frame rates close to 1 MHz, 3D tracking of Tat peptide-coated nanoparticles on giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs), imaging the formation of lipid bilayers, sensing single unlabelled proteins and tracking their motion under electric fields, as well as challenges of studying live cell membranes. These studies set the ground for future quantitative research on dynamic biophysical processes at the nanometer scale.

Few-photon coherent nonlinear optics with a single molecule

Andreas Maser, Benjamin Gmeiner, Tobias Utikal, Stephan Goetzinger, Vahid Sandoghdar

Nature Photonics 10 450-453 (2016) | Journal

The pioneering experiments in linear spectroscopy were performed using flames in the 1800s, but nonlinear optical measurements had to wait until lasers became available in the twentieth century. Because the nonlinear cross-section of materials is very small(1,2), macroscopic bulk samples and pulsed lasers are usually used. Numerous efforts have explored coherent nonlinear signal generation from individual nanoparticles(3-5) or small atomic ensembles(6-8) with millions of atoms. Experiments on a single semiconductor quantum dot have also been reported, albeit with a very small yield(9). Here, we report the coherent nonlinear spectroscopy of a single molecule under continuous-wave single-pass illumination and the switching of a laser beam by on the order of ten pump photons. The sharp molecular transitions and efficient photon-molecule coupling at a tight focus(10) allow for optical switching with less than a handful of pump photons and are thus promising for applications in quantum engineering(11).

Born on April 29, 1966 in Tehran, Iran. Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of California in Davis (1987), Ph.D. in Physics (supervisors: E. A. Hinds and S. Haroche) from Yale University (1993), Postdoctoral Fellow at École Normale Supérieure (group of S. Haroche) in Paris. Head of the Nano-Optics group und habilitation in Physics at University of Konstanz (Chair of J. Mlynek). Professorship at Eidgenössischen Technischen Hochschule (ETH) Zurich (2001-2011). Recipient of an ERC Advanced Grant (2010). Alexander von Humboldt Professorship at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg and Director and Scientific Member at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen since 2011. Fellow of the Optical Society (OSA) and recepient of the 2023 Quantum Electronics and Optics Award for Fundamental Aspects from the European Physical Society. Founder of the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin, a joint research center that aims to address questions in fundamental medical research with physical and mathematical methods.

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