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The photonic integration of non-solid media using optofluidics

Nature Photonics volume 5, pages 598–604 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

Photonics has long been used to study non-solid materials such as liquids, gases and plasmas, but these fluidic media have traditionally not comprised a functional part of the photonic device or system. The emerging field of optofluidics seeks to create new ways of uniting solid and non-solid materials in a single photonic system whose optical properties are typically defined by the fluidic component. This Review summarizes the current state of optofluidics from a photonics perspective. First, we describe a new class of photonic elements based on the combination of fluidic media and integrated optical structures. We then discuss the applications of optofluidic principles to particle sensing and manipulation in fluids, and finally assess current challenges and potential directions for future developments.

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Figure 1: Optofluidic dye lasers.
Figure 2: Optofluidic light routing and shaping.
Figure 3: Optofluidic filter structures for light control.
Figure 4: Optofluidic particle manipulation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank P. Measor for assistance with the figures and acknowledge support by the W.M. Keck Center for Nanoscale Optofluidics at the University of California at Santa Cruz, the National Science Foundation under grants ECS-0528714 and ECS-0528730, and the National Institutes of Health under grants R01EB006097 and R21EB008802.

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  1. School of Engineering, University of California at Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95064, California, USA

    Holger Schmidt

  2. Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, 459 Clyde Building, Brigham Young University, Provo, 84602, Utah, USA

    Aaron R. Hawkins

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Correspondence to Holger Schmidt.

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Schmidt, H., Hawkins, A. The photonic integration of non-solid media using optofluidics. Nature Photon 5, 598–604 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2011.163

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