Dr. Jun Li

Area of study: Chemistry
Email: junli@ksu.edu
Website: Homepage

“Early diagnosis and effective monitoring of treatment are key cancer-fighting techniques which can benefit from nanotechnology. Nanoscience and nanotechnology refer to the understanding and control of matter at the atomic, molecular or macromolecular levels, at the length scale of approximately 1-100 nanometers (1 nanometer = 1 billionth of a meter). We focus on the development of electronic nanodevices to detect and manipulate biomolecules and cells for cancer research.

Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are grown on micropatterned electrical circuits and then encapsulated with insulating materials leaving only the tip exposed. Biomolecules attached to the exposed tip can be used to detect specific genetic sequences or proteins that can accompany a cancer. The ability to manipulate the charged biomolecules with a highly focused local electric field provides ultrahigh sensitivity as well as high speed and accuracy, ideal for handheld point-of-care cancer diagnosis technology.”