Bond-selective interferometric scattering microscopy

Abstract

Interferometric scattering (iSCAT) microscopy has been a very promising technology for highly sensitive label-free imaging of a broad spectrum of biological nanoparticles from proteins to viruses in a high-throughput manner. Although it can reveal the specimen’s size and shape information, the chemical composition is inaccessible in interferometric measurements. Infrared (IR) spectroscopic imaging provides chemical specificity based on inherent chemical bond vibrations of specimens but lacks the ability to image and resolve individual nanoparticles due to long IR wavelengths. Here, we describe a bond-selective iSCAT microscope where the mid-IR induced photothermal signal is detected by a visible beam in a wide-field common-path interferometry configuration. A thin film layered substrate is utilized to reduce the reflected light and provide a reference field for the interferometric detection of the weakly scattered field. A pulsed mid-IR laser is employed to modulate the interferometric signal. Subsequent demodulation via a virtual lock-in camera offers simultaneous chemical information about tens of micro- or nano-particles. The chemical contrast arises from a minute change in the particle’s scattered field in consequence of the vibrational absorption at the target molecule. We characterize the system with sub-wavelength polymer beads and highlight biological applications by chemically imaging several microorganisms including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans. A theoretical framework is established to extend bond-selective iSCAT microscopy to a broad range of biological micro- and nano-particles.