Refractive Index Observer

Descripción del proyecto

Dispositivo de microscopía complementario para la cartografía de gradientes químicos a microescala mediante mediciones del índice de refracción local

El estudio de los gradientes químicos a microescala es fundamental para los avances en diversas disciplinas científicas, como la ciencia de los materiales, la ingeniería química y las ciencias de la vida. Sin embargo, la investigación se ve obstaculizada por los métodos de medición actuales, que se basan en fluoróforos o colorantes. Estas alteran las propiedades del sistema y solo ofrecen información indirecta. En este contexto, el proyecto RIO, financiado por el Consejo Europeo de Investigación, pretende desarrollar un dispositivo complementario para microscopios ópticos. Denominado Refractive Index Observer (observador del índice de refracción), permitirá la caracterización sin etiquetas y en alta resolución de gradientes químicos a microescala sin las limitaciones actuales. El proyecto desarrollará las piezas y tecnologías necesarias, optimizará el «software» y los sistemas de control, realizará pruebas y mejorará la precisión y la eficacia.

Objetivo

Microscale chemical gradients are essential in life sciences, materials science, and chemical processes, yet existing measurement methods rely on fluorophores or dyes that inherently alter system properties and provide only indirect insights.

With this PoC, we aim to revolutionize their quantification by further developing and ultimately commercializing RIO - the Refractive Index Observer - an add-on device for optical microscopes that enables label-free, high-resolution characterization of chemical gradients at the microscale.

The technology uses Fabry-Pérot interferometry to obtain time-resolved two-dimensional (2D) refractive index (RI) maps at the microscale and convert this information into chemical gradient mapping. With a resolution of at least 2x10-5 RI units, RIO is comparable to a benchtop refractometer for bulk samples but with the spatial resolution of a typical optical microscope and a 10-millisecond time resolution. RIO is born out of the ERC CoG “ACTIVE_ADAPTIVE” as a tool to measure chemical gradients in active matter systems. We have already patented the technology, which is at TRL4. With this PoC we aim at taking RIO to TRL6/7 and lay the groundwork for its commercialization by:

1. Developing the current hardware to (i) push the time resolution to sub-millisecond while maintaining the highest RI resolution and (ii) create a palette of customized interferometric microfluidic chips to cover a broad range of application fields.
2. Advancing the control system and software via a robust, professional and intuitive graphical user interface (GUI).
3. Conducting a techno-economic assessment of the technology alongside a product-market fit evaluation.
4. Carrying out user testing and fundraising for pre-commercialization.

If successfully implemented, RIO has the potential to disrupt the way microscopy is performed on liquid samples across a wide range of disciplines, including electrochemistry, microrobotics, cell biology, and materials science.