Contact information:
Name: Weichun Zhang, MSc. (张位春)
Section: Biological and Molecular Physics
Group: Molecular Nano-Optics and Spins
Email: ZhangW@physics.leidenuniv
Phone: +31 (0)71 527 5676
Fax: ++31 (0)71 527 5936
Location: HL, room 805
Address :
Leiden Institute of Physics
Leiden University
Niels Bohrweg 2
2333 CA Leiden
Netherlands
Postal address
P.O. Box 9504
NL 2300 RA LEIDEN
Academic background
PhD candidate in Physics, Leiden University (the Netherlands). (Jul. 2014 – )
Adviser: Prof. Dr. Michel Orrit
Research topics: single-molecule spectroscopy, fluorescence microscopy, two-photon spectroscopy, electrochemistry, nanophotonics, plasmonics.
My Ph.D. project composes of two main parts:
- I use single gold nanorods to enhance the one-photon-excited fluorescence emission from single Methylene Blue molecules so that I can study the electrochemical properties of single molecules using a confocal microscope combined with a potentiostat. Our group was able, for the first time, to observe the redox cycle of a single molecule optically using fluorescence as the readout.
- I use single gold nanorods to enhance the two-photon-excited fluorescence emission of single molecules. A femtosecond Ti-Sapphire laser is used to excite the plasmon of gold nanorods and two-photon excited fluorescence of dye molecules, and the interaction between gold nanorods and molecules is investigated.
Master in Optical Engineering, Zhejiang University. (Sep. 2011 – Mar. 2014).
Advisor: Prof. Dr. Min Qiu
Thesis: “Research on the photothermal properties of metal nanoparticles”
Research topics: numeric simulation, nanophotonics, plasmonics.
Bachelor in Optical Science. China Jiliang University (Sep. 2007 – Jul. 2011).
Selected publications:
- W. Zhang, M. Caldarola, B. Pradhan, and M. Orrit. “Gold Nanorod-Enhanced Fluorescence Enables Single-Molecule Electrochemistry of Methylene Blue” Angewandte Chemie International Edition (2017) (link). In this paper, we present an enhanced fluorescence detection scheme that allows the study of electrochemical properties of methylene blue at single-molecule level using an optical readout.
- W. Zhang, Q. Li, and Min Qiu, “A plasmon ruler based on nanoscale photothermal effect”, Optics Express 21(1), 172-181 (2013). In this paper, we demonstrate the potential of using the photo-induced temperature increase of gold nanoparticle dimers to make a ruler with nanometer precision.
- Weichun Zhang, Qiang Li, Lijun Meng, Ding Zhao, Min Qiu, “Universal scaling behavior of the temperature increase of a heat nanoparticle on a substrate”, Journal of Nanophotonics, 9(1),
- 093046 (2015).
- Qing Wang, Hang Zhao, Xu Du, Weichun Zhang, Min Qiu, and Qiang Li, “Hybrid photonic-plasmonic molecule based on metal/Si disks”, Optics Express 21 (9), 11037-11047 (2013).
- Qiang Li, Weichun Zhang, Hang Zhao, Min Qiu, “Two-dimensional Analysis Photothermal Properties in Nanoscale Plasmonic Waveguides for Optical Interconnect”, Journal of Lightwave Technology 31(24), 4051-4056 (2013).
- Qiang Li, Weichun Zhang, Ding Zhao, Min Qiu, “Photothermal enhancement in core-shell structured plasmonic nanoparticles”, Plasmonics, 9(3), 623-630 (2014).
- Kaikai Du, Qiang Li, Weichun Zhang, Min Qiu, “Wavelength and thermal distribution selectable microbolometers based on metamaterial absorbers”, Photonics Journal, IEEE, 7(3), 6800908 (2015).
- Zuwen Liu, Qiang Li, Weichun Zhang, Yuanqing Yang, Min Qiu, “Nanoscale Control of Temperature Distribution Using a Plasmonic Trimer”, Plasmonics, 10(4), 911-918 (2015).