Nanophotonics

There is a critical need for the development of new technologies that can determine the early signs of diseases at the cellular level in real time, and allow treatment of diseases in a seamless fashion. Today, the amount of research in biomedical science and engineering at the molecular level is growing exponentially because of the availability of new investigative nanotools.

These new analytical tools are capable of probing the nanometer world and make it possible to characterize the chemical and mechanical properties of cells, discover novel phenomena and processes, and provide science with a wide range of methods, materials, devices and systems with unique characteristics.

Using nanobiosensors, we can probe individual chemical species in specific locations throughout a living cell. Tracking biochemical processes in intracellular environment can be performed in vivo with the use of molecular probes and nanosensors for molecular medicine applications. With powerful microscopy technologies using near-field optics, we can explore the biochemical processes and sub-microscopic structures of living cells at unprecedented resolutions.

In addition to detection of intracellular signals, we will develop photonics imaging labels for nanocarriers to be used in targeted delivery of drugs that have their shells conjugated with antibodies for targeting antigens and fluorescent chromophores for in vivo tracking.

Nanophotonics Faculty

Jun Chen

Professor of Medicine

Ashutosh Chilkoti

Alan L. Kaganov Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Ashutosh Chilkoti is the Alan L. Kaganov Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Duke University...

Harold Paul Erickson

James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emeritus
Recent research has been on cytoskeleton (eukaryotes and bacteria); a skirmish to debunk the irisin story; a reinterpretation of proposed multivalent...

Bernard Martin Fischer

Associate Professor in Pediatrics
Comparative Pharmacology and Cell Biology Mechanisms of complementary-alternative medicines and products Signal Transduction and Cell Signaling...

Geoffrey Steven Ginsburg

Adjunct Professor in the Department of Medicine
Dr. Geoffrey S. Ginsburg's research interests are in the development of novel paradigms for developing and translating genomic information into...

Daniel P. Kiehart

Professor of Biology
Our intellectual focus is on identifying determinants of cell shape that function during development. Utilizing molecular genetic and reverse genetic...

Shivanand Lad

Professor of Neurosurgery
Dr. Nandan Lad is a neurosurgeon, scientist, and entrepreneur and Professor and Vice Chair of Innovation for Duke Neurosurgery. He is Director...

Jie Liu

George Barth Geller Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
Dr. Liu’s research interests are focusing on the chemistry and material science of nanoscale materials. Specific topics in his current research...

Gregory M. Palmer

Professor of Radiation Oncology
Greg Palmer obtained his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Marquette University in 2000, after which he obtained his Ph.D. in BME from the...

David R. Smith

James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Dr. David R. Smith is currently the James B. Duke Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Duke University. He is also Director...

Steve M Taylor

Associate Professor of Medicine
My lab website has a fuller description of my research activities: https://sites.duke.edu/taylorlab/. I am principally interested in field and...

Adam P. Wax

Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Wax's research interests include optical spectroscopy for early cancer detection, novel microscopy and interferometry techniques. The study of...

Benjamin J. Wiley

Professor of Chemistry
In the Wiley Group, we make new nanomaterials by controlling the assembly of atoms in solution, and explore applications for nanomaterials in...

Christopher Wildrick Woods

Wolfgang Joklik Distinguished Professor of Global Health
1. Emerging Infections 2. Global Health 3. Epidemiology of infectious diseases 4. Clinical microbiology and diagnostics 5. Bioterrorism...

Lingchong You

James L. Meriam Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering
The You lab uses a combination of mathematical modeling, machine learning, and quantitative experiments to elucidate principles underlying the...

Fan Yuan

Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Yuan has extensive experiences in analysis of therapeutic agent transport in mammalian cells, tissues, and organs, and development of effective...

Aimee Kirsch Zaas

Professor of Medicine
Medical education Genomic applications for diagnosis of infectious diseases Genomic applications for prediction of infectious diseases