Analyzing Increased Fluorescence of Single Quantum Dots on Dehydrated Agarose by Single-Molecular Imaging

A single-molecule imaging technique was used to study emission behaviors of quantum dots (QDs) on the surface of glass and dehydrated agarose. The luminescence intensity of single QDs on the dehydrated agarose film was 2 or 3 times that on the glass. Our results revealed that the roughness and the hydrophobic nature of dehydrated agarose gel can suppress the blinking of single QDs. A clear decrease in the power law exponent for on time but an increase for off time was observed when the glass was replaced with 4% and 8% dehydrated agarose. The enhanced luminescence of QDs on dehydrated agarose will make their applications on microarrays more attractive.