When: July 20, 2026
Where: QNC 1501
High Resolution Single Molecule Sensing Using Solid-State Nanopores with Laser Technology
Abstract :
Nanopore sensing has emerged as a powerful single-molecule platform for probing the size, shape, charge, and structure of biomolecules. In this presentation, Yamazaki will introduce the basic principles of nanopore sensing and describe his recent work on solid-state nanopores integrated with optical technology. Yamazaki show that focused visible-light irradiation of silicon nitride nanopores induces localized photothermal heating, reducing electrolyte viscosity, enhancing ionic conductance, and generating steep thermal gradients near the pore. By accounting for thermophoretic effects, the nanopore ionic current can be used as a nanoscale thermometer, enabling rapid and label-free single-molecule thermoscopy of biomolecular thermal transitions. Yamazaki will also discuss our study of photothermal etching in silicon nitride membranes under prolonged high-power illumination. This process enables controlled nanopore enlargement and, when combined with dielectric breakdown, provides a versatile route for fabricating nanopores with tunable diameters down to 1–2 nm. Finally, Yamazaki will briefly introduce our latest work on photothermally enhanced molecular transport in nanopores.
Related references :
1. Xue, L.#; Yamazaki, H.#; Ren, R.; Wanunu, M.; Ivanov, A.; Edel, J. Solid-state nanopore sensors. Nature Review Materials 2020, 5, 931-951. #Co-first author
2. Yamazaki, H.; Hu, R.; Henley, R. Y.; Halman, J.; Afonin, K. A.; Yu, D.; Zhao, Q.; Wanunu, M., Label-Free Single-Molecule Thermoscopy Using a Laser-Heated Nanopore. Nano Letters 2017, 17 (11), 7067-7074.
3. Yamazaki, H.; Hu, R.; Zhao, Q.; Wanunu, M., Photothermally Assisted Thinning of Silicon Nitride Membranes for Ultrathin Asymmetric Nanopores. ACS Nano 2018, 12 (12), 12472-12481.
4.Yamazaki, H.*; Mabuchi, T.; Kaito, K.; Matsuda, K.; Kato, H.; Uemura, S., Photothermally Heated Asymmetric Thin Nanopores Suggest the Influence of Temperature on the Intermediate Conformational State of Cytochrome c in an Electric Field. Nano Letters 2024, 24, 10219-10227.
5. Kuwabara, H.; Tsuchiya, W.; Ishiguro, F.; Shoji, K.; Yamazaki, H.*, Enhanced DNA capture in silicon nitride nanopores via localized photothermal convection. Nanoscale 2026, 18 (5), 2515-2524
Biography
Hirohito Yamazaki is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Nagaoka University of Technology, where he leads the Nanoscale OptoBioFluidics Lab. His research is centered on the development of solid-state nanopore devices for diagnostic applications and other advanced bioanalytical technologies. He earned his Ph.D. in Engineering from Keio University in 2016, conducting research on nano-optical technologies for biomolecular detection. He then joined the laboratory of Prof. Meni Wanunu at Northeastern University as a JSPS Overseas Research Fellow, where he investigated the integration of optical methods with nanopore sensing. After returning to Japan, he served as a group leader in the JST ERATO project, a major Japanese government-funded program supporting pioneering research, and worked as an Research Assistant Professor at the University of Tokyo. His research achievements have been published in leading journals, including Nature Reviews Materials, ACS Nano, Nano Letters, Journal of the American Chemical Society, and PNAS.