Development of an Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectrometer with Zeptomole Sensitivity

University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

With support from the Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program and partial co-funding from the Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Experimental Physics program, Dr. Gurudev Dutt and his team at the University of Pittsburgh are investigating processes in small volumes, such as inside a cell or within nanoscale materials such as battery electrode materials. These processes often differ markedly from those in bulk solutions due to increased surface area effects. Statistical physics, thermodynamics, and dynamical considerations can play an outsized role in these domains – it is therefore critical to develop sensing and imaging technologies that can access this domain. Specifically, the Dutt group is developing tools to provide a window into the very fast (nanosecond to microsecond) functional dynamics of systems involving just a few hundred molecules with sub-micron spatial resolution. The high-throughput platform can provide images in an array of channels being subjected to various chemical or physical stimuli. The multi-faceted challenges to be tackled provide educational and training opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students that form the future scientific and professional workforce. The PI also presents lectures about optical spectroscopy to students at a local high school to serve as a scaffold for junior year chemistry projects, and will work with their science teachers to create a summer workshop on “Quantum Sensing and Quantum Computing for Chemistry”. The long-term aim of these outreach efforts is to break the cycle of generational poverty by preparing low-income youth for higher education. The main objective of this research program is to create a next-generation biochemistry and biophysics exploration platform to study nanoscale electron spin dynamics under room-temperature conditions. During the three years of this project, the Dutt team will measure electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra of electron spin-labeled bio-molecules with zeptomole sensitivity (10-21 moles) in an optically addressable microfluidic device, with full control over temperature and magnetic field. They will design and construct a diamond-based chip with quantum sensors that can obtain reproducible EPR spectra on small ensembles of electron spins at room temperature, eventually reaching the level of single spins. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.