Probing cellular activity via charge-sensitive quantum nanoprobes

Uri Zvi; Shivam Mundhra; David Ovetsky; Qing Chen; Aidan R Jones; Stella Wang; Maria Roman; Michele Ferro; Kunle Odunsi; Marina C Garassino; Michael E Flatte'; Melody Swartz; Denis R Candido; Aaron Esser-Kahn; Peter C Maurer

doi:10.48550/arxiv.2503.20816

Back

Probing cellular activity via charge-sensitive quantum nanoprobes

Preprint

Open access

Probing cellular activity via charge-sensitive quantum nanoprobes

Uri Zvi, Shivam Mundhra, David Ovetsky, Qing Chen, Aidan R Jones, Stella Wang, Maria Roman, Michele Ferro, Kunle Odunsi, Marina C Garassino, …

ArXiV.org

Cornell University

03/25/2025

DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2503.20816

Files and links (1)

url

https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2503.20816View

Preprint (Author's original)This preprint has not been evaluated by subject experts through peer review. Preprints may undergo extensive changes and/or become peer-reviewed journal articles. Open Access

Abstract

Nitrogen-vacancy (NV) based quantum sensors hold great potential for real-time single-cell sensing with far-reaching applications in fundamental biology and medical diagnostics. Although highly sensitive, the mapping of quantum measurements onto cellular physiological states has remained an exceptional challenge. Here we introduce a novel quantum sensing modality capable of detecting changes in cellular activity. Our approach is based on the detection of environment-induced charge depletion within an individual particle that, owing to a previously unaccounted transverse dipole term, induces systematic shifts in the zero-field splitting (ZFS). Importantly, these charge-induced shifts serve as a reliable indicator for lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-mediated inflammatory response in macrophages. Furthermore, we demonstrate that surface modification of our diamond nanoprobes effectively suppresses these environment-induced ZFS shifts, providing an important tool for differentiating electrostatic shifts caused by the environment from other unrelated effects, such as temperature variations. Notably, this surface modification also leads to significant reductions in particle-induced toxicity and inflammation. Our findings shed light on systematic drifts and sensitivity limits of NV spectroscopy in a biological environment with ramification on the critical discussion surrounding single-cell thermogenesis. Notably, this work establishes the foundation for a novel sensing modality capable of probing complex cellular processes through straightforward physical measurements.

Physics - Applied Physics

Physics - Biological Physics

Physics - Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics

Physics - Optics

Physics - Quantum Physics

Details

Title: Subtitle: Probing cellular activity via charge-sensitive quantum nanoprobes
Creators: Uri Zvi - University of Chicago
Shivam Mundhra - University of Chicago
David Ovetsky - University of Chicago
Qing Chen - University of Chicago
Aidan R Jones - University of Chicago
Stella Wang - University of Chicago
Maria Roman - University of Chicago
Michele Ferro - University of Chicago
Kunle Odunsi - University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center
Marina C Garassino - University of Chicago
Michael E Flatte' - University of Iowa
Melody Swartz - University of Chicago
Denis R Candido - University of Iowa
Aaron Esser-Kahn - University of Chicago
Peter C Maurer - University of Chicago
Resource Type: Preprint
Publication Details: ArXiV.org
DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2503.20816
ISSN: 2331-8422
Publisher: Cornell University; Ithaca, New York
Language: English
Date posted: 03/25/2025
Academic Unit: Electrical and Computer Engineering; Physics and Astronomy
Record Identifier: 9984802405602771

Metrics

6 Record Views