F

Tools and Technologies

Aloof beam electron energy loss spectroscopy: A variation of electron energy loss spectroscopy in which the beam is aimed away from the sample itself in order to measure energy loss (and thereby determine the elemental composition of a sample) without damaging the sample.

Autofluorescence: The natural emission of fluorescent light by biological structures.

Conductive atomic force microscopy: A microscopy technique combining optical imaging with measures of electrical current.

Cryogenic electron microscopy: A type of electron microscopy that uses samples cooled to cryogenic temperatures, affording the ability to locate individual atoms in biomolecules.

Electroencephalogram: A record of the electrical activity in the brain.

Electromigration: The movement of atoms through a material when a current flows through it.

Entangled photon spectroscopy: A nonlinear-type spectroscopy of entangled photons that may be used to detect quantum correlations.

Femtosecond adaptive spectroscopic technique for coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering: A technique for rapid identification of preselected molecules (e.g., airborne contaminants) based on analyzing molecular vibrations.

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy: A method for tracking fluorescent particles in living systems through the analysis of fluctuations in fluorescence intensity over time.

Fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy: An imaging technique based on analyzing the decay rate of fluorophores in a sample.

Fluorescent proteins: Proteins that exhibit fluorescence when exposed to certain wavelengths of light, commonly used as tags to visualize the activity of genes and proteins in a cell using fluorescence microscopy.

Ghost imaging: An imaging technique that combines information from a conventional detector that does not view the object being imaged with a single--

pixel detector that does view the object, thus reconstructing an image with light that never directly interacts with the object.

Inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy: A method for studying the junctions where electrons move among molecules when a bias voltage is applied, yielding information about the chemical elements that are present.

Infrared nerve manipulation: A method for stimulating nerve cells using short pulses of infrared light.

Infrared spectroscopy: A spectroscopy method that measures how infrared light interacts with a substance, thus yielding information about its components.

Magnetic resonance imaging: An imaging technique that measures how atoms in the body respond to strong magnetic fields and radio waves, creating detailed images deep into living tissues.

Magneto electroencephalography: A technique for mapping brain activity based on measuring magnetic fields produced by electrical currents.

Multiphoton excitation microscopy: A microscopy technique that simultaneously excites a sample (and any fluorescent dyes it contains) with multiple photons, allowing imaging at a greater depth and with less background signal compared to other microscopy techniques.

Nanoparticles: A particle small enough to be measured in nanoparticles, usually between 1 and 100 nanometers across.

Nitrogen-vacancy-center (NV-center) diamonds: A defect occurring in diamonds that can be used to cause a quantum spin state to interact with magnetic fields, enabling magnetic measurements at the nanoscale and forming a building block for quantum technologies.

Optogenetics: A method for manipulating the activity of neurons through genetic modifications that make certain nerve cells fire when exposed to light.

Optophysiology: A method for studying the mechanisms governing an organism’s movements by combining optogenetics with electrophysiological techniques and behavioral observations.

Positron emission tomography: An imaging technique that measures physiological and metabolic activity by tracing the movement of radioactive substances in the body’s tissues.

Quantum dots: Engineered particles of semiconducting material a few nanometers in diameter, capable of converting light into different colors.

Quantum illumination: A method for signaling or imaging based on the spatial correlations between pairs of photons even after entanglement is broken.

Quantum spectroscopy: Spectroscopy techniques that use quantum light sources or the quantum-optical fluctuations of light to assess quantum dynamics or reveal information about a sample.

Scanning tunneling microscopy: A technique that takes advantage of the quantum mechanical effect of tunneling, the piezoelectric effect, and feedback loops to enable imaging of surfaces at the atomic level.

Single-molecule spectroscopy: A range of spectroscopy methods that allow the study of individual molecules.

Superradiance: A high-intensity pulse created when a group of emitters interacts with a common light field.

Time-resolved broadband fluorescence spectroscopy: A technique of time-resolved spectroscopy that measures photons emitted by a sample to measure ultrafast processes in biological systems.

Transient absorption spectroscopy: A technique of time-resolved spectroscopy that uses two laser pulses to measure absorption by a sample to detect ultrafast processes in biological systems.

Ultrafast spectroscopy: Spectroscopic techniques that use ultrashort pulse lasers to measure molecular dynamics at timescales of attoseconds to nanoseconds

Vibrational infrared photothermal amplitude and phase signal imaging: An imaging method that targets the resonances of compounds in the mid-infrared region, allowing the identification of chemicals in biological samples without using of labels.

X-ray microscopy: A technique that uses x-rays to generate images of the features of microscopic samples.

X-ray tomography: Methods that use x-rays to recreate a virtual model of a three-dimensional object.