Short-Range Spectroscopic Ruler Based on a Single-Molecule Optical Switch
Abstract
We demonstrate a novel all-optical switch consisting of two molecules: a primary fluorophore (Cy5) that can be switched between a fluorescent and a dark state by light of different wavelengths, and a secondary chromophore (Cy3) that facilitates switching. The interaction between the two molecules exhibits a distance dependence much steeper than that of conventional Förster resonance energy transfer. This enables the switch to act as a ruler with the capability to probe distances difficult to access by other spectroscopic methods, thus presenting a new tool for the study of biomolecules at the single-molecule level.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review Letters
- Pub Date:
- March 2005
- DOI:
- arXiv:
- arXiv:q-bio/0502012
- Bibcode:
- 2005PhRvL..94j8101B
- Keywords:
-
- 87.64.-t;
- 33.50.-j;
- 78.67.-n;
- 87.80.-y;
- Spectroscopic and microscopic techniques in biophysics and medical physics;
- Fluorescence and phosphorescence;
- radiationless transitions quenching;
- Optical properties of low-dimensional mesoscopic and nanoscale materials and structures;
- Biological techniques and instrumentation;
- biomedical engineering;
- Quantitative Biology - Quantitative Methods;
- Quantitative Biology - Biomolecules;
- Physics - Biological Physics;
- Physics - Chemical Physics
- E-Print:
- Article contains 4 pages and 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters. Supplementary material and movie file will be available through the PRL web site at the time of publication