Nanoscale resolution for fluorescence microscopy via adiabatic passage

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Atomic, Molecular, and Chemical Physics
• Biophysics

Background:

• Fluorescence microscopy is crucial for biological imaging.
• Achieving nanoscale resolution in the far field remains a significant challenge.
• Existing techniques like coherent population trapping and stimulated-emission-depletion have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and analyze a novel technique for achieving nanoscale resolution in fluorescence microscopy.
• To demonstrate the capability of subwavelength localization via adiabatic passage for high-resolution imaging.
• To compare the proposed method with existing super-resolution microscopy techniques.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing a Lambda (Λ)-type atomic system.
• Employing two coherently coupled laser pulses: a pump with a spatial node and a Stokes pulse.
• Implementing adiabatic passage to transfer population, creating a localized peak at the pump's node.
• Deriving an analytical expression to quantify the achievable resolution.

Main Results:

• The subwavelength localization via adiabatic passage technique enables fluorescence imaging with nanometer lateral resolution.
• A narrow population peak is generated due to adiabatic population transfer, confined to the node of the pump pulse.
• Analytical resolution assessment shows promise for surpassing current limitations.

Conclusions:

• The proposed technique offers a viable method for far-field fluorescence microscopy with nanoscale resolution.
• Subwavelength localization via adiabatic passage presents an advancement over coherent population trapping and stimulated-emission-depletion.
• This technique holds potential for high-resolution imaging in biological and physical sciences.