Compact THz based systems for neuroscience applications
Lead Research Organisation:
Aston University
Department Name: College of Engineering and Physical Sci
Abstract
Following the EPSRC Grant EP/H015795/1 and FP7 project No 285974 'TERA', our group has developed new compact semiconductor quantum-dot lasers and antennas for the THz sources, and acquired an outstanding equipment and experience in the field of THz research and its applications. Within this project, we will implement all our existing setups and knowledge to cover THz region - from 0.1 to 5 THz. Our preliminary experiments with THz time-domain spectroscopic (THz-TDS) setup and optical-pump-THz-probe experiments showed the ability to see and resolve spectral features, as well as minor and fast changes in them. A major part of this research programme will be to implement these techniques for biological samples and perform not only straightforward spectroscopic and THz-TDS measurements, but also all kinds of pump-probe experiments, involving all broad variety of sources at hand to serve as either pump or probe beams: optical pump -THz probe, THz pump - THz probe, IR pump - THz probe, and other combinations of pump and probe beams to check the affect onto cell cultures and tissues. The main target of the project is to develop the clear and simple diagnostic tools for structural brain recognition and investigate the THz radiation treatment properties on bio-materials.
Planned Impact
This research will lead to the creation of new THz-derived technologies in the healthcare sector. The key beneficiaries of this research will be patients (an enhanced quality of life and better treatment through potentially quicker and safer diagnosis) and the NHS (cost reductions derived from improved diagnostic technologies and improved treatment regimens; and also not less importantly from reduced energy consumption. The latter in its own turn minimises climate change thus improving the environment and population health). For example, a key medical application in surgery has been identified, which should benefit the patient through the use of less invasive surgical techniques, and benefit surgeons by allowing precise diagnosis of tissues prior to excision making the operation more efficient and improving patient outcomes
Building on our existing relationships, the collaboration between Aston-UCL-Innolume-M-Squared-TeraView-Tydex and other internationally recognised institutions offers an opportunity to develop agenda-setting ideas in this field. The novel methodologies described in the proposal are expected to offer the new knowledge base within THz spectroscopy and its applications for biomedical studies, such as cell and tissue characterisation, as well as the scenario of the interaction of THz radiation with biological tissues. We believe that performance on this scale fulfilled by the results of laboratory tests run with available devices would establish this concept at the forefront of developments of compact and robust THz based systems that have the potential to broaden the range of feasible and practical applications in the biomedicine.
We anticipate that our commercial partners in the project will receive direct benefit from their involvement in the short to medium term. In the longer term, UK and EU industry and commerce would stand to gain from increased application of compact, low-cost THz laser sources in a widening range of high-technology products.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. An estimated 37 million people worldwide currently suffer from dementia; AD affects about 18 million of them. AD is a disease associated with ageing and it affects 5% of individuals aged 65 and above and 35% of individuals aged 80 and above, however; the number of individuals with Alzheimer's disease is expected to almost double to 34 million by 2025, with around 1 million new cases per year by 2050.
There are currently in excess of 150,000 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) in the UK, a number that is set to rise, and both the human and financial costs due to this are substantial. The annual cost of nursing home care for PD in the UK is estimated to be ~ £600-800 million. A recent study in Germany estimated the socioeconomic burden at 20,095 Euros (£16,400) per patient per year, and with an ageing population worldwide this represents a very substantial cost to society. To date, available treatments for PD or AD are palliative in nature, relieving the symptoms but only postponing mortality. A cure for PD and AD is, therefore, of great importance, with information about the aetiology of diseases a crucial factor in developing such a treatment. Both AD and PD are complex diseases and while research in the field has significantly progressed in recent years, the mechanisms of neurodegeneration remain controversial. The proposed experiments should illuminate fundamental aspects of the mechanisms of neurodegeneration and will potentially help providing new avenues for both prevention and targeted treatment of the disease.
We believe that this project has the significant academic impact in terms of advancing methods and knowledge in this field of biology. However, it also has potentially significant societal and economic impact mainly through its beneficial applications to the healthcare of the nation.
Building on our existing relationships, the collaboration between Aston-UCL-Innolume-M-Squared-TeraView-Tydex and other internationally recognised institutions offers an opportunity to develop agenda-setting ideas in this field. The novel methodologies described in the proposal are expected to offer the new knowledge base within THz spectroscopy and its applications for biomedical studies, such as cell and tissue characterisation, as well as the scenario of the interaction of THz radiation with biological tissues. We believe that performance on this scale fulfilled by the results of laboratory tests run with available devices would establish this concept at the forefront of developments of compact and robust THz based systems that have the potential to broaden the range of feasible and practical applications in the biomedicine.
We anticipate that our commercial partners in the project will receive direct benefit from their involvement in the short to medium term. In the longer term, UK and EU industry and commerce would stand to gain from increased application of compact, low-cost THz laser sources in a widening range of high-technology products.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. An estimated 37 million people worldwide currently suffer from dementia; AD affects about 18 million of them. AD is a disease associated with ageing and it affects 5% of individuals aged 65 and above and 35% of individuals aged 80 and above, however; the number of individuals with Alzheimer's disease is expected to almost double to 34 million by 2025, with around 1 million new cases per year by 2050.
There are currently in excess of 150,000 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) in the UK, a number that is set to rise, and both the human and financial costs due to this are substantial. The annual cost of nursing home care for PD in the UK is estimated to be ~ £600-800 million. A recent study in Germany estimated the socioeconomic burden at 20,095 Euros (£16,400) per patient per year, and with an ageing population worldwide this represents a very substantial cost to society. To date, available treatments for PD or AD are palliative in nature, relieving the symptoms but only postponing mortality. A cure for PD and AD is, therefore, of great importance, with information about the aetiology of diseases a crucial factor in developing such a treatment. Both AD and PD are complex diseases and while research in the field has significantly progressed in recent years, the mechanisms of neurodegeneration remain controversial. The proposed experiments should illuminate fundamental aspects of the mechanisms of neurodegeneration and will potentially help providing new avenues for both prevention and targeted treatment of the disease.
We believe that this project has the significant academic impact in terms of advancing methods and knowledge in this field of biology. However, it also has potentially significant societal and economic impact mainly through its beneficial applications to the healthcare of the nation.
Publications
Fedorova K
(2018)
InP/InGaP quantum-dot SESAM mode-locked Alexandrite laser
Fotiadi A
(2023)
Brillouin Interaction between Two Optical Modes Selectively Excited in Weakly Guiding Multimode Optical Fibers.
in Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)
Ghanbari S
(2018)
Femtosecond Alexandrite laser passively mode-locked by an InP/InGaP quantum-dot saturable absorber.
in Optics letters
Gorodetsky
Optical pump-terahertz probe study of carrier relaxation processes in InAs:GaAs quantum dot terahertz materials
in App Phys Lett
Gorodetsky A
(2021)
Operation of quantum dot based terahertz photoconductive antennas under extreme pumping conditions
in Applied Physics Letters
Gorodetsky A
(2018)
Photoelectric Properties of InAs/GaAs Quantum Dot Photoconductive Antenna Wafers
in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics
Gorodetsky A
(2023)
Enhanced THz Generation From Interdigitated Quantum Dot Based Photoconductive Antenna Operating in a Quasi-Ballistic Regime
in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics
Description | It was developed a compact room temperature THz source which was used to develop imaging system for brain. Novel type of THz antennae were proposed, developed and characterised. Such antennae can be pumped by low-power ultra-short pulse lasers (quantum dot based laser diodes), which will significantly reduce the size of THz sources. |
Exploitation Route | It can be a base for new ERSRC and/or EU project applications. We also will consider Innovate UK |
Sectors | Aerospace Defence and Marine Chemicals Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Electronics Healthcare |
Description | (MIDLIFT) - Mid-infrared laser system for high-throughput bioprinting by laser-induced forward-transfer |
Amount | € 212,934 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 843801 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 09/2019 |
End | 09/2021 |
Description | (MULTIPLY) - International Mobility and Training in Photonics Programme |
Amount | € 6,372,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 713694 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 09/2016 |
End | 09/2022 |
Description | (MultiBioScan) - Multimodal hyperspectral system for imaging of biological tissues glycation |
Amount | € 224,934 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 839888 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 02/2020 |
End | 02/2022 |
Description | (NEUROPA) - Non-invasive dynamic neural control by laser-based technology |
Amount | € 3,604,780 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 863214 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 01/2020 |
End | 12/2022 |
Description | (PLATFORMA) - Peripheral Nervous System Tissue Engineering for Medical and Cosmetic Testing Applications |
Amount | € 1,999,994 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 951890 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 09/2020 |
End | 09/2022 |
Description | (PULSE) - High-Power Ultrafast LaSErs using Tapered Double-Clad Fibre |
Amount | € 5,206,208 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 824996 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 01/2019 |
End | 12/2022 |
Description | (SCAFFOLD-NEEDS) - Commercialization of 3D scaffold platforms for neuronal cell culture models |
Amount | € 100,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 851734 |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 07/2019 |
End | 01/2021 |
Description | 703145 FORECAST - Fluorescence lifetime optical biopsy system |
Amount | € 195,455 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 703145 FORECAST |
Organisation | European Commission |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 01/2017 |
End | 12/2018 |
Description | ADVANCED MULTIMODAL PHOTONICS LASER IMAGING TOOL FOR UROTHELIAL DIAGNOSIS IN ENDOSCOPY |
Amount | € 4,700,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | European Commission H2020 |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 01/2020 |
End | 12/2024 |
Description | Advanced Optical Frequency Comb Technologies and Applications |
Amount | £1,722,851 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/W002868/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2022 |
End | 03/2027 |
Description | Non-invasive dynamic neural control by laser-based technology - H2020 FET OPEN |
Amount | € 3,600,000 (EUR) |
Funding ID | No. 863214 |
Organisation | European Commission H2020 |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 01/2020 |
End | 12/2023 |
Description | Scaff-Net: 3 Dimensional multiphoton polymerisation printed scaffolds for medium throughput recording from stem cell derived human cortical networks. |
Amount | £201,118 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/X018385/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2023 |
End | 02/2024 |
Description | Organizer of Summer school "Photonics meets Biology" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Schools have focused on training photonics, biology and medical postdocs and postgraduate students on (i) laser technology for biomedical applications, and (ii) biomedical applications of lasers. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2019,2022 |
URL | https://www.farsarilab.com/summerschool |