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Updated: Jun 2, 2026
Detection and Isolation of Circulating Melanoma Cells using Photoacoustic Flowmetry
Published on: November 25, 2011
Photodegradation of melanin by an interferometric technique
C W Farley1, A Kassu, A Sharma
1Department of Physics, Alabama A&M University, Normal, Alabama 35762, USA.
Abstract:
Photodegradation of melanin thin films is investigated for a UVA wavelength of 355 nm and a UVC wavelength of 244 nm. The technique involves interferometric exposure of melanin with two coherent beams from a low-power UV laser. The periodic photodegradation-grating pattern is monitored by diffraction of a second low-power He-Ne laser. Dependence of the photodegradation rate on UV intensity as well as the effect of ambient humidity is investigated and explained with a simple model. The technique has promise for investigating photo-induced effects in other biomolecular substrates as well.
