Abstract

Lasers are used by the biomedical community in many applications. These include flow cytometry, microscope imaging, solution spectroscopy, and very recently, optical manipulation of cells and subcellular particles. This paper reviews applications of lasers involving fluorescent probes. In most applications, these technologies require ~10 mW of laser power focused to cellular dimension (except for the solution measurements). I estimate that there are several thousand flow cytometers, several hundred laser imaging systems, and several hundred laser spectroscopy instruments distributed between the biomedical, physics and chemistry communities. Optical trapping as a commercial technology is emerging rapidly at the time this paper is being written using IR diode lasers to manipulate the cells.

© 1992 Optical Society of America