Su's Photonics Research Featured In Defense Threat Reduction Agency Journal

BME assistant professor Judith Su's photonics research, which may lead to smaller chemical sensors, was recently featured in the Defense Threat Reduction Agency's monthly newsletter. The DTRA's Chemical and Biological Technologies Department has invested in University of Arizona research to create "small, lightweight, and low-power chemical sensors."

The core of the research is FLOWER (Frequency-Locked Optical Whispering Evanescent Resonator), which uses light waves to detect substances down to the single molecule. According to JSTO, while the initial FLOWER prototype is a bench-scale instrument, researchers plan to design a small, low-cost sensor prototype.

"Normal sensors will interact with a molecule once. But in this case, it will interact with the molecule hundreds of thousands of times, so we get this buildup of signal, which is what gives us our sensitivity boost," Su said. "We're also starting a project to research olfaction, vapor and breath."

Research is being conducted in Su's Little Sensor Lab, in conjunction with associate optical sciences professor Euan McLeod, both of whom are members of the BIO5 Institute.