Project description
Interacting photons enable deeper tissue imaging without compromising safety
Pioneering advances in medicine and biology often depend on observing the microscopic world with high resolution without compromising specimen integrity. Multiphoton fluorescence microscopy is a widely used technique for this, offering 3D imaging through optical sectioning without physically slicing the sample. Leveraging the unique properties of quantum entanglement, the ERC-funded QuNIm project aims to overcome the insufficient penetration depth and low signal-to-noise ratios of multiphoton fluorescence microscopy. Researchers will use quantum-correlated photons, which are absorbed more efficiently than their classical counterparts, thereby allowing deeper tissue imaging without requiring high laser intensities and reducing potential tissue damage. Project results could significantly impact neuroscience, enabling unprecedented studies of subcortical brain regions, fundamental for understanding learning, memory and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
Objective
Many pioneering advances in medicine and biology require observation of the microscopic world with high resolution and without damaging the specimen. One of the most widespread techniques is multiphoton fluorescence microscopy, which allows full 3D imaging via optical sectioning, i.e. imaging of planes within the sample without the need for physical slicing. This technique has a major limitation, however: the penetration depth and the signal-to-noise ratio are not sufficient for imaging deep within tissue, preventing functional imaging of, e.g. neuronal or cardiac activity beyond superficial layers.
QuNIm aims to transform the field of nonlinear imaging and microscopy by exploiting the unique properties of entanglement, a quantum mechanical superposition of two or more photons that behave like single particles. Two quantum-correlated photons are absorbed in a nonlinear process as a single particle, an event 10 billion times more probable than the absorption of two classical photons. QuNIm will apply, for the first time, the innovative concepts of spatiotemporal and multimode entanglement, super-Poissonian fluctuations, and macroscopic quantum beams to deliver a ground-breaking imaging technique. It will maintain the strengths of standard nonlinear imaging (e.g. multiphoton microscopy, boasting high resolution, 3D imaging and molecular specificity using fluorophores/photoproteins) while increasing its penetration depth and removing the drawbacks (complex ultrashort pulsed lasers, lengthy scanning procedures, and phototoxicity).
QuNIm will further extend the limit of deep-tissue imaging while at the same time enhancing the contrast and reducing the laser intensity (mitigating tissue damage), delivering a transformative impact in different fields. For example, in neuroscience, this will allow imaging of, e.g. sub-cortical brain regions fundamental for important studies into learning, memory and degenerative neural conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences neurobiology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine neurology dementia alzheimer
- natural sciences physical sciences optics microscopy
- natural sciences physical sciences optics laser physics
- natural sciences physical sciences theoretical physics particle physics photons
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2023-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
21100 Varese
Italy
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