Achievement

IGERT trainee Gurpreet Kaur studied the interaction of high-power THz radiation with biological systems. THz radiation is generally considered to be safe and noninvasive for biomedical applications due to its low photon energy as compared to gamma- and X- rays. However with the development of high-power THz sources, it is important to understand the resonant effects of THz radiation with molecules and to investigate whether any molecular structural changes can be induced by THz radiation. The understanding of nonlinear effects of THz radiation is also crucial to address health/radiation concerns regarding the impact of intense THz radiation on cells and tissues. Gurpreet applied two techniques in her PhD work: THz-induced fluorescence modulation in amino acids and proteins and THz-induced second-harmonic generation in proteinogenic amino acids. She investigated the short- and long- term dynamical changes leading to structural modifications of biomolecules.