Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published May 2012 | public
Journal Article

SHG nanoprobes: Advancing harmonic imaging in biology

Abstract

Second harmonic generating (SHG) nanoprobes have recently emerged as versatile and durable labels suitable for in vivo imaging, circumventing many of the inherent drawbacks encountered with classical fluorescent probes. Since their nanocrystalline structure lacks a central point of symmetry, they are capable of generating second harmonic signal under intense illumination – converting two photons into one photon of half the incident wavelength – and can be detected by conventional two-photon microscopy. Because the optical signal of SHG nanoprobes is based on scattering, rather than absorption as in the case of fluorescent probes, they neither bleach nor blink, and the signal does not saturate with increasing illumination intensity. When SHG nanoprobes are used to image live tissue, the SHG signal can be detected with little background signal, and they are physiologically inert, showing excellent long-term photostability. Because of their photophysical properties, SHG nanoprobes provide unique advantages for molecular imaging of living cells and tissues with unmatched sensitivity and temporal resolution.

Additional Information

© 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Article first published online: 6 Mar. 2012. WPD was supported by the Caltech Rosen Scholar Graduate Fellowship. This work was supported by the Bioimaging Center at the California Institute of Technology, and the Swiss National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) "Nanoscale Science". We apologize to authors whose work was not cited due to space limitations.

Additional details

Created:
August 22, 2023
Modified:
October 17, 2023