Period, duration
February-June 2026, 24 weeks
Profile required
Final-year Master's or engineering student - applied physics with an interest in optics
Gratuity
4.05/h (standard)
Location
Annecy-le-vieux ; Maison de la mécatronique ; Symme laboratory
Subject
Background :
Ferroelectric nanoparticles are composed of materials such as LiNbO3, BiFeO3 and LiTaO3 and are known as "Harmonic Nanoparticles". Thanks to their non-centrosymmetrical crystal structure, they possess extremely rich non-linear optical properties [1], useful for applications in multiphoton imaging [2]. These include the early diagnosis of cancer cells, or the targeted, on-demand release of anti-cancer molecules.
Required work :
The aim of the internship is to characterize nonlinear properties using a multiphoton microscope developed in the laboratory [3]. This system is based on a femtosecond laser source tunable over a wide wavelength range, enabling spectroscopic studies to be carried out. Particular attention will be paid to characterization in the third biological infrared window [e], a wavelength range not yet studied but very useful for deep imaging applications in human skin. This internship work will be essentially experimental, and based on the following tasks:
- Getting to grips with the microscopy system - learning how to align and control it
- Measurement of signals emitted by different types of nanoparticles (LiNbO3, BiFeO3, LiTaO3) to study process efficiency.
Depending on the progress of the internship, a presentation at a scientific conference or the writing of a scientific article may be envisaged. In addition, a thesis may be considered, depending on the candidate's results and motivation.
A little reading :
[1] Bonacina, L. Nonlinear Nanomedicine: Harmonic Nanoparticles toward Targeted Diagnosis and Therapy, 2012-11 Molecular Pharmaceutics , Vol. 10, No. 3 American Chemical Society (ACS) pp. 783-792. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/mp300523e
[2] Vittadello, L et al. Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 3193. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11123193
[3] Riporto, J., et al. Second harmonic spectroscopy of ZnO, BiFeO3 and LiNbO3 nanocrystals 2019-03 Optical Materials Express , Vol. 9, No. 4 The Optical Societyp. 1955
Contact
Please send your transcripts for the last two years and your CV to :
Laura.Vittadello
@univ-smb.fr
Project team
Laura Vittadello, teacher-researcher POLYTECH A-C / SYMME
Yannick Mugnier, teacher-researcher POLYTECH A-C / SYMME
Ronan Le Dantec, teacher-researcher IUT Annecy / SYMME