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My computational research embarks upon both theoretical and numerical approaches to understand the optical properties of novel metal nanoparticles for innovative biomedical imaging applications. Specifically, my work is focused on analytical models of light scattering by concentric spherical particles and numerical simulations of light interactions with nanoparticles in complex environments.
Using vector spherical wave functions, I developed a computational code based on Mie theory that calculates the scattering and absorption of multilayer concentric spheres. The code has been extensively used to compute the optical properties of gold-silica-gold multilayer nanoshells. Although these nanoparticles are approximately one thousandth of the width of an average human hair in size, their scattering and absorption cross sections are found to be many orders of magnitude larger than conventional dyes owing to surface plasmon resonance effects. The Mie code reveals the agile optical tunability of these particles that enables application-specific engineering designs.
I am also working on implementing high-resolution numerical approaches to study nanoparticles in complex environments. While finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations are standard for micron-sized photonics structures, massively parallel computational facilities are desired to perform simulations for materials with nanometer features much smaller than the vis-NIR wavelength. I am interested in harnessing the power of supercomputing to advance our understanding of the behavior of these nanoscale structures in different biological environments. The understanding is facilitating the design of a photothermal microscope that unitizes absorption of gold-based nanoparticles for imaging contrast.
- Contributor to the Optical Tweezers Computational Toolbox developed at the Center for Biophotonics and Laser Science, The University of Queensland, Australia, 2007-2008.
- Y. Hu, D. R. Jackson, J. T. Williams, S. A. Long, and V. R. Komanduri, "Characterization of the Input Impedance of the Inset-Fed Rectangular Microstrip Antenna as the Geometry Varies in Its Feed Region," IEEE Trans. Antennas and Propagation, 56(10), 2008.
- Y. Hu, T. A. Nieminen, N. R. Heckenberg, and H. Rubinsztein-Dunlop, "Anti-reflection coating for improved optical trapping," J. Appl. Phys., 103(1), 2008.
- Y. Hu, R. Fleming, and R. Drezek, "Optical properties of gold-silica-gold multilayer nanoshells," Opt. Express, 16(24), 2008.
- E. Y. Hleb, Y. Hu, R. A. Drezek, J. H. Hafner, and D. O. Lapotko, "Photothermal bubbles as optical-scattering probes for imaging living cells," Nanomed., 3(6), 2008.
- L. Bickford, Y. Hu, J. Sun, K. Fu, E. Day, N. Lewinski, J. Chang, T-K Yu, and R. Drezek, "Materials for nanomedicine: biomedical applications of gold nanoshells in biomedical nanotechnology," Pan Stanford Publishing, 2008.
- T. A. Nieminen, T. Asavei, Y. Hu, M. Persson, R. Vogel, V. L. Y. Loke, S. J. Parkin, N. R. Heckenberg, and H. Rubinsztein-Dunlop, "Tailoring particles for optical trapping and micromanipulation: an overview," PIERS Online, 4(3), 2008.
- L. R. Bickford, J. Chang, K. Fu, J. Sun, Y. Hu, A. Gobin, T-K Yu, and R. A. Drezek, "Immunotargeted gold nanoshells for cancer diagnostics: potential use in point of care applications," Nanotechnology, 2008, published online.
- L. B. Carpin, L. R. Bickford, N. A. Lewinski, A. Coughlin, Y. Hu, E. S. Day, J. L. West, and R. A. Drezek, "A New Era for Cancer Therapy: Gold Nanoparticle Theranostics," Small, submitted, 2009
- Y. Hu, S. J. Noelck, and R. A. Drezek, "Symmetry breaking in gold-silica-gold multilayer nanoshells," ACS Nano, 4(3), 2010.
- Y. Hu, J. Jeon, T. J. Seok, P. J. Schuck, R. A. Drezek, and H. Choo, Understanding enhanced Raman scattering from nano-patterned process-engineered substrates coated with plasmonic gold nanoparticles, in preparation, 2010.
- E. Lukianova-Hleb, Y. Hu, A. Volkov, L.Zhigiley, S. Lee, R. Drezek, J.Hafner, and D.Lapotko, Plasmonic nanobubbles as transient vapor nanobubbles generated around plasmonic nanoparticles, ACS Nano, in press, 2010.
- A. T. Zayak, Y. Hu, H. Choo, S. Cabrini, P. J. Schuck, and J. B. Neaton, Selective chemical Raman enhancement for organic absorbates at metal surfaces, in preparation, 2010.
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