Fourier imaging correlation spectroscopy: Technique development and application to colloidal thin films and intracellular mitochondrial transport

Understanding fluid dynamics is fundamentally intriguing and relevant to many areas of applied science, including polymer materials and cellular transport. Many complex fluids are difficult to study using traditional methods, which are limited in sensitivity, dynamic range or spatial information. In this work, a new technique, Fourier Imaging Correlation Spectroscopy (FICS), is developed in order to measure the dynamics of complex fluids over a broad dynamic range with high sensitivity. FICS measures complex fluid structure one length scale at a time and allows for direct calculation of the intermediate scattering function; a function that describes how the system is changing on a given length scale as a function of time. The sensitivity of FICS allows for study of materials with intrinsically low signals, such as thin films. Colloidal thin film measurements provided a proof-of-principle of FICS by comparing the intermediate scattering function calculated from FICS data to results from an established technique, digital video microscopy.; FICS is an ideal method for obtaining information about mitochondrial transport within living cells. Mitochondrial dynamics are strongly influenced by interactions with cytoskeletal filaments and their associated motor proteins. This leads to complex multi-exponential relaxations occurring over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. The cytoskeleton consists of an interconnected polymer network whose primary components are microfilaments and microtubules. Cytoskeletal filaments work with motor proteins to traffic organelles within the cell. Components of the cytoskeleton were selectively destabilized and the resulting mitochondrial dynamics measured using FICS and digital video microscopy. These studies show that both microfilaments and microtubules are necessary for transport of the mitochondrial reticulum. FICS measurements reveal that microfilaments control short-range (0.8–1.6 μm) dynamics and microtubules are responsible for transport over larger distances (>1.6 μm).; This dissertation includes co-authored and previously published material.