Innovations in imaging have revolutionized life science and medicine. Among various imaging modalities, vibrational imaging has emerged as a major technology, by visualizing the fundamental chemical bonds inside living cells and tissues with high sensitivity, speed, specificity and resolution. In this talk I will first introduce recent advances in theoretical understanding and technical innovations of vibrational imaging. In particular, I will discuss stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy, which can amplify the otherwise feeble Raman scattering signal by up to 100 million times. Then I will highlight new research areas and applications in biomedicine and environmental science, including (1) single-molecule chemical spectroscopy, (2) single-particle nanomedicine and nanoplastics, (3) super-resolution chemical nanoscopy, (4) super-multiplexed imaging for brain mapping, and (5) vibrational spatial omics.
Wei Min received his B.S. from Peking University in 2003 and Ph.D. from Harvard University in 2008 studying single-molecule biophysics with Prof. Sunney Xie. After continuing his postdoctoral work in Xie group, Dr. Min joined the faculty at Columbia University in 2010, and was promoted to Full Professor there in 2017. Dr. Min's contribution has been recognized by a number of honors, including Biophotonics Technology Innovator Award from SPIE (2023), Raman Award for the Most Innovative Technological Development (2022), Craver Award of Vibrational Spectroscopy (2022), Scientific Achievement Award from Royal Microscopical Society (2021), Pittsburgh Conference Achievement Award (2019), Analyst Emerging Investigator Lectureship (2018), Coblentz Award of Molecular Spectroscopy (2017), the ACS Early Career Award in Experimental Physical Chemistry (2017), Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award (2015), Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship (2013), and NIH Director's New Innovator Award (2012).