Learning objectives
This course intends to explore the foundations of selected spectroscopic methods normally used to investigate molecular properties. Ground and excited state properties as well as their interactions with the environment will be dealt with, with steady state and time resolved methodologies.
Students will learn how to interpret the significance of experimental results emerging from the optical methods covered in the course and become capable of performing experiments using the methods covered with the laboratory practice.
Prerequisites
Electromagnetism, classical geometrical and wave optics, quantum mechanics, condensed matter physics
Course unit content
Radiation-Matter interactions
Steady state optical methods
Time resolved optical methods
Excited state processes
Fluorescence spectroscopy methods
Mechanisms and dynamics of competitive de-excitation
Photothermal spectroscopies
Single molecule detection
Laboratory practice
Full programme
Radiation-Matter interactions
Steady state optical methods
UV-vis Absorption spectroscopy
IR absorption spectroscopy (FTIR)
Polarization, anisotropy, CD
Time resolved optical methods
Time resolved absorption
Pump and probe methods
Step scan FTIR
Excited state processes
Fluorescence spectroscopy methods
Time-Correlated Single-Photon Counting
Laser sources and detection
Frequency-Domain detection
Mechanisms and dynamics of competitive de-excitation
Photothermal spectroscopies
Photoacoustics
Thermal lensing and grating
Single molecule detection
Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy
Single molecule FRET.
Laboratory practice
Bibliography
Principles of Fluorescence Spectroscopy, Third Edition, Joseph R. Lakowicz, Springer
Original research papers and reviews published on scientific journals
Teaching methods
The course consists in a series of lectures covering the fundamentals of the spectroscopic methodologies. For those methods available at this Department, laboratory practice will be taken.
Assessment methods and criteria
Student reports on the practice and the methods introduced in the course
Other information
- - -
