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Title: Applications and optimization of a two-photon excited fluorescence fiber-optic probe

Miscellaneous ·
OSTI ID:5518419

Fiber-optic remote sensing using two-photon induced molecular fluorescence was presented as a potential in situ monitoring technique for major fluorescent components in a simulated fermentation broth. It was shown that the two-photon induced signal is relatively uperturbed by the presence of a cellular matrix, allowing quantitation at very high cell densities. A fiber-based sample chamber for cryogenic two-photon measurements was developed and evaluated. The fiber-based system allowed the sample to be completely immersed in the cryogenic medium resulting in more efficient temperature control. The excellent signal stability afforded by this configuration will permit cryogenic measurements which were hitherto impossible using high average-power mode-locked lasers. Attempts were made to implement the sample cell for collection of two-photon excitation spectra. Operation of the TAC in the reverse-interactive mode permitted use of higher repetition rates, and yielded greater signal magnitude; however, the presence of a long-lived fiber background caused a large increase in the method blank with repetition rate. The nonlinearly-induced interferant resulted in severe signal-to-blank ratio degradation, prohibiting the implementation of higher experimental duty-cycles. A preliminary investigation of the background's origin was undertaken. The detection capabilities of the time-resolved, two-photon method were investigated in the absence of a fiber optic. Picomolar detection limits were attained using right-angle geometry and microscope objectives for focusing and collection optics. Time-filter processing was applied to the quantitative two-photon data to enhance method signal-to-noise. It was demonstrated that time-filtered detection may be successfully employed to reject a short-lived two-photon induced blank signal.

Research Organization:
Purdue Univ., Hammond, IN (United States)
OSTI ID:
5518419
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Thesis (Ph.D.)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English