Making a single photon capable of detecting a single molecule

Recipient
Volodymyr Zenin
University of Southern Denmark
Project number:
00040707
Grant amount
1.999.850 DKK
Year
2021

Project description

Plasmonic optical devices are based on the interaction of light with free electrons at the surface of a metal. Such devices hold great promises for future highly sensitive and energy-saving biosensor chips. However, to reach this goal, we must solve the fundamental scientific challenge: How can we make a single photon capable of detecting a single molecule? The wavelength of light is ~500 nm whereas the size of a single molecule is only ~2 nm, therefore the size of light must be squeezed by a factor >250. I suggest a novel multilayer platform, in the first attempt consisting of single-crystalline gold, atomically thin MoS2, and air. It is my research hypothesis that radiation of this multilayer configuration by visible light will lead to generation of extraordinary plasmons with wavelengths that are small enough to interact with nanometer-sized objects, that being a single molecule, a quantum dot, or a point emitter.