Skip Nav Destination
Science: The photoacoustic effect is the creation of sound waves in a material caused by the absorption of pulses of light. Because sound waves can be used to determine the shapes of objects, Michael Kolios of Ryerson University in Toronto and his colleagues decided to try using the effect on red blood cells. They created a laser that pulsed once every 760 ns, which induced sound waves with a frequency of more than 100 MHz. When they tested the laser on human blood samples, they were able to observe very small details in the shapes of the red blood cells and thus recognize changes due to diseases such as malaria or sickle cell anemia. The method requires much less blood than standard tests and is significantly faster. However, it is not useful for analyzing diseases that affect platelets or white blood cells, because they don’t absorb light as readily as red blood cells do.
© 2013 American Institute of Physics

Laser-induced vibrations reveal blood cell damage caused by diseases Free
3 July 2013
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/PT.5.027149
Content License:FreeView
EISSN:1945-0699
Q&A: Tam O’Shaughnessy honors Sally Ride’s courage and character
Jenessa Duncombe
Ballooning in Albuquerque: What’s so special?
Michael Anand
Comments on early space controversies
W. David Cummings; Louis J. Lanzerotti