Nonlinear Microscopy

Beyond the length scale of protein-protein interactions lies another order of complexity altogether, where proteins work together to orchestrate cellular processes. Today’s microscopes usually use artificial labels to identify and follow particular molecular species to illicit their role in cellular function. As well as the difficulty of labeling samples of interest, labels can be toxic, or modify the behaviour of the system being studied. A better solution would be to use physical properties of the molecules themselves to reveal their part in cellular function. We routinely use nonlinear spectroscopies for molecular identification and for probing molecular environments. By bringing these powerful techniques to the microscope we obviate the need for labeling and tap into rich and novel modes of molecular contrast.

CARS Microscopy

Pulse-shaping-based Microscopy