A University of Victoria engineering professor is being named as the Canada Research Chair in Nanoplasmonics. Reuven Gordon’s research will help in the creation of sensors for the early detection of cancers, new tools to study viral infection and more efficient and cost-effective solar devices.
“Research and development are essential to Canada’s long-term economic growth, and to providing discoveries that help improve the quality of life for all Canadians,” says the Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources. “The Canada Research Chairs program is helping our universities develop and attract and retain talented people, strengthening our capacity for leading-edge research, while building economic opportunities for Canadians, now and in the future.”
“The Canada Research Chairs program helps universities to attract and retain the best talent from around the world, assisting universities like the University of Victoria to achieve research excellence in natural sciences and engineering, health sciences, and social sciences and humanities,” says UVic President David Turpin. “Dr. Gordon conducts leading-edge work that will push the limits of his study area with medical and sustainable energy applications. He joins a long list of UVic researchers who have benefited from the program.”
Under a microscope, human cells can be seen with our eyes. Viruses or cancer markers, however, are invisible because they are much smaller than the wavelength of light. To see them, the light must be reduced to the nanometre scale. Gordon is using ‘nanoplasmonics’, with nanofabricated metals, to “squeeze” the light. A nanometer is equal to one billionth of a meter.
Gordon is also researching the use of nanoplasmonics for more efficient solar energy conversion. While solar energy is the most bountiful of green-energy sources, it is also the most expensive, so it is hardly used. Again, nanostructured metals show promise in this area because they allow for more efficient light absorption from the sun with lower material costs. For more information about Gordon’s research visit www.ece.uvic.ca/faculty/rgordon.shtml
“By shrinking light to the nanometer scale, the size of viruses, for example, it is possible to increase the interaction of light with materials at the nanometer scale,” Gordon explains. “This has obvious benefits when trying to detect a single molecule that identifies if someone has cancer, or when trying to capture and study a virus with light. Even large-scale devices, like solar cells, can benefit from nanoplasmonics because they enhance light-matter interaction dramatically.”
The latest round of Canada Research Chairs was announced in Victoria today. Also included were 10 UVic chair renewals: Robert Chow (Retinal and Early Eye Development); Ted Darcie (Optical Systems for Communications, Imaging, and Sensing), Xiaodai Dong (Ultra-wideband Communications), Arthur Kroker (Technology, Culture and Theory), Ian Putnam (Operator Algebras and Dynamical Systems), Anthony N Quas (Measurable Dynamics and Ergodic Theory), Raymond Siemens (Humanities Computing), Margaret-Anne Storey (Cognitive Support for Software and Knowledge Engineering), Verena Tunnicliffe (Deep Oceans Research) and Joan Wharf Higgins (Health and Society). The renewals are for seven- and five-year terms respectively. UVic holds 35 CRC positions.
In total, the Government of Canada is investing $23 million to support 28 Canada Research Chairs in British Columbia.
