Biomechanical Sensing Using Gas Bubbles Oscillations in Liquids and Adjacent Technologies: Theory and Practical Applications.

Gas bubbles present in liquids underpin many natural phenomena and human-developed technologies that improve the quality of life. Since all living organisms are predominantly made of water, they may also contain bubbles-introduced both naturally and artificially-that can serve as biomechanical sensors operating in hard-to-reach places inside a living body and emitting signals that can be detected by common equipment used in ultrasound and photoacoustic imaging procedures. This kind of biosensor is the focus of the present article, where we critically review the emergent sensing technologies based on acoustically driven oscillations of bubbles in liquids and bodily fluids.

Acoustic, Phononic, Brillouin Light Scattering and Faraday Wave-Based Frequency Combs: Physical Foundations and Applications.

Frequency combs (FCs)-spectra containing equidistant coherent peaks-have enabled researchers and engineers to measure the frequencies of complex signals with high precision, thereby revolutionising the areas of sensing, metrology and communications and also benefiting the fundamental science. Although mostly optical FCs have found widespread applications thus far, in general FCs can be generated using waves other than light. Here, we review and summarise recent achievements in the emergent field of acoustic frequency combs (AFCs), including phononic FCs and relevant acousto-optical, Brillouin light scattering and Faraday wave-based techniques that have enabled the development of phonon lasers, quantum computers and advanced vibration sensors.

Neural echo state network using oscillations of gas bubbles in water.

In the framework of physical reservoir computing (RC), machine learning algorithms designed for digital computers are executed using analog computerlike nonlinear physical systems that can provide energy-efficient computational power for predicting time-dependent quantities that can be found using nonlinear differential equations. We suggest a bubble-based RC (BRC) system that combines the nonlinearity of an acoustic response of a cluster of oscillating gas bubbles in water with a standard echo state network (ESN) algorithm that is well suited to forecast chaotic time series. We confirm the plausibility of the BRC system by numerically demonstrating its ability to forecast certain chaotic time series similarly to or even more accurately than ESN.

Spectrally wide acoustic frequency combs generated using oscillations of polydisperse gas bubble clusters in liquids.

Acoustic frequency combs leverage unique properties of the optical frequency comb technology in high-precision measurements and innovative sensing in optically inaccessible environments such as under water, under ground, or inside living organisms. Because acoustic combs with wide spectra would be required for many of these applications but techniques of their generation have not yet been developed, here we propose an approach to the creation of spectrally wide acoustic combs using oscillations of polydisperse gas bubble clusters in liquids. By means of numerical simulations, we demonstrate that clusters consisting of bubbles with precisely controlled sizes can produce wide acoustic spectra composed of equally spaced coherent peaks.

Acoustic frequency combs using gas bubble cluster oscillations in liquids: a proof of concept.

We propose a new approach to the generation of acoustic frequency combs (AFC)-signals with spectra containing equidistant coherent peaks. AFCs are essential for a number of sensing and measurement applications, where the established technology of optical frequency combs suffers from fundamental physical limitations. Our proof-of-principle experiments demonstrate that nonlinear oscillations of a gas bubble cluster in water insonated by a low-pressure single-frequency ultrasound wave produce signals with spectra consisting of equally spaced peaks originating from the interaction of the driving ultrasound wave with the response of the bubble cluster at its natural frequency.

Excitation of Faraday-like body waves in vibrated living earthworms.

Biological cells and many living organisms are mostly made of liquids and therefore, by analogy with liquid drops, they should exhibit a range of fundamental nonlinear phenomena such as the onset of standing surface waves. Here, we test four common species of earthworm to demonstrate that vertical vibration of living worms lying horizontally on a flat solid surface results in the onset of subharmonic Faraday-like body waves, which is possible because earthworms have a hydrostatic skeleton with a flexible skin and a liquid-filled body cavity. Our findings are supported by theoretical analysis based on a model of parametrically excited vibrations in liquid-filled elastic cylinders using material parameters of the worm's body reported in the literature.

Beamed UV sonoluminescence by aspherical air bubble collapse near liquid-metal microparticles.

Irradiation with UV-C band ultraviolet light is one of the most commonly used ways of disinfecting water contaminated by pathogens such as bacteria and viruses. Sonoluminescence, the emission of light from acoustically-induced collapse of air bubbles in water, is an efficient means of generating UV-C light. However, because a spherical bubble collapsing in the bulk of water creates isotropic radiation, the generated UV-C light fluence is insufficient for disinfection.

Modal interferometric refractive index sensing in microstructured exposed core fibres.

Optical fibre-based sensors measuring refractive index shift in bodily fluids and tissues are versatile and accurate probes of physiological processes. Here, we suggest a refractive index sensor based on a microstructured exposed-core fibre (ECF). By considering a high refractive index coating of the exposed core, our modelling demonstrates the splitting of the guided mode into a surface sensing mode and a mode that is isolated from the surface.

Harmonic and subharmonic waves on the surface of a vibrated liquid drop.

Liquid drops and vibrations are ubiquitous in both everyday life and technology, and their combination can often result in fascinating physical phenomena opening up intriguing opportunities for practical applications in biology, medicine, chemistry, and photonics. Here we study, theoretically and experimentally, the response of pancake-shaped liquid drops supported by a solid plate that vertically vibrates at a single, low acoustic range frequency. When the vibration amplitudes are small, the primary response of the drop is harmonic at the frequency of the vibration.

Sensitive and Multiplexed SERS Nanotags for the Detection of Cytokines Secreted by Lymphoma.

The sensitive and simultaneous detection of cytokines will provide new insights into the physiological process and disease pathways due to the complex nature of cytokine networks. However, the key challenge is the lack of probes that can simultaneously detect multiple cytokines in a single sample. In this contribution, we proposed an alternative approach for sensitive cytokine detection in a multiplex manner by the use of a new set of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) nanotags.

Facile One-Pot Synthesis of Nanodot-Decorated Gold-Silver Alloy Nanoboxes for Single-Particle Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Activity.

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is an important, highly sensitive technique for chemical and biological analysis, which is critically dependent upon high-performance metallic substrates. Anisotropic gold (Au)-silver (Ag) alloy nanoboxes are attractive SERS substrates because of the greatly enhanced Raman signals from the strong electromagnetic fields on the sharp corners. Yet, the routine approach of Au-Ag alloy nanobox synthesis is still challenging because of the complicated procedures and use of biologically/environmentally unfriendly reagents.

Extended depth of field imaging through multicore optical fibers.

Compact microendoscopes use multicore optical fibers (MOFs) to visualize hard-to-reach regions of the body. These devices typically have a large numerical aperture (NA) and are fixed-focus, leading to blurry images from a shallow depth of field with little focus control. In this work, we demonstrate a method to digitally adjust the collection aperture and therefore extend the depth of field of lensless MOF imaging probes.

Synthesis of discrete phase-coherent optical spectra from nonlinear ultrasound.

Nonlinear acoustic interactions in liquids are effectively stronger than nonlinear optical interactions in solids. Thus, harnessing these interactions will offer new possibilities in the design of ultra-compact nonlinear photonic devices. We theoretically demonstrate a new scheme for synthesis of optical spectra from nonlinear ultrasound harmonics using a hybrid liquid-state and nanoplasmonic device compatible with fibre-optic technology.

Plasmonic nanoantenna hydrophones.

Ultrasound is a valuable biomedical imaging modality and diagnostic tool. Here we theoretically demonstrate that a single dipole plasmonic nanoantenna can be used as an optical hydrophone for MHz-range ultrasound. The nanoantenna is tuned to operate on a high-order plasmon mode, which provides an increased sensitivity to ultrasound in contrast to the usual approach of using the fundamental dipolar plasmon resonance.

Magneto-Plasmonics and Resonant Interaction of Light with Dynamic Magnetisation in Metallic and All-Magneto-Dielectric Nanostructures.

A significant interest in combining plasmonics and magnetism at the nanoscale gains momentum in both photonics and magnetism sectors that are concerned with the resonant enhancement of light-magnetic-matter interaction in nanostructures. These efforts result in a considerable amount of literature, which is difficult to collect and digest in limited time. Furthermore, there is insufficient exchange of results between the two research sectors.

Transverse magneto-optical Kerr effect in subwavelength dielectric gratings.

We demonstrate theoretically a large transverse magneto-optical Kerr effect (TMOKE) in subwavelength gratings consisting of alternating magneto-insulating and nonmagnetic dielectric nanostripes. The reflectivity of the grating reaches 96% at the frequencies corresponding to the maximum of the TMOKE response. The combination of a large TMOKE response and high reflectivity is important for applications in 3D imaging, magneto-optical data storage, and magnonics.

Actively tunable bistable optical Yagi-Uda nanoantenna.

We propose and theoretically demonstrate a novel type of optical Yagi-Uda nanoantennas tunable via variation of the free-carrier density of a semiconductor disk placed in a gap of a metallic dipole feeding element. Unlike its narrowband all-metal counterparts, this nanoantenna exhibits a broadband unidirectional emission and demonstrates a bistable response in a preferential direction of the far-field zone, which opens up unique possibilities for ultrafast control of subwavelength light not attainable with dipole or bowtie architectures.

Active control over nanofocusing with nanorod plasmonic antennas.

Active control over light nanofocusing in a nanorod plasmonic antenna coupled to a photonic crystal cavity is proposed and demonstrated by means of full-vectorial 3D simulations. By varying the excitation of the cavity with laser beam spot size allows us to achieve a gradual control over light nanofocusing at the tip of the nanoantenna. The demonstrated control mechanism eliminates the need for nonlinear effects or mechanical reconfiguration and represents a step towards the implementation of reliable tunable subwavelength light sources.