ESR13 – Jalu Setiya Pradana

Jalu Setiya Pradana

Host: FOx Biosystems NV
Supervisors: Dr. Filip Delport (FOx), Jeroen Lammertyn (KUL)

ESR 13: Demonstration and validation of an integrated FO-SPR biosensor with nanoswitch

“Every day we learn something new to build new technologies with new detection methods to improve people’s health globally.”

The goal of this project is to proof feasibility of CONSENSE technology towards continuous bioprocess monitoring and taking the next step by providing a proof-of-concept demonstrator at system level. Within the project a cell-based model system will be accessible with a dynamic behavior. Realtime biological assays will be used to generate information on the biology of response dynamics.

In the CONSENSE project, I, under the supervision of my supervisor, will be directly involved in the development of fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (FO-SPR) to monitor continuous biosensing with higher accuracy and precision. I believe that engaging in research and developing innovative projects in continuous biomolecular sensing with easy-to-use fiber-optic biosensing solutions at an industrial scale will directly provide me with many new perspectives and realize my goals and contribution more quickly in terms of utilizing photonics to improve public health.

Growing up as a child from Indonesia who had a very strong interest in science, I aspired to study more about science, especially physics. Over time, my perspective on physics became wider and I became interested in the application of physics in the medical field. With a very high passion for optics and photonics, I am inspired to be directly involved in the development of biosensors by utilizing the Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) phenomenon which is considered capable of detecting up to a single molecule in real-time measurement and has high accuracy. I believe with my contribution in this field, preventive measures and early treatment of several diseases can be provided which will greatly reduce their severity.

My love of physics since childhood led me to take a bachelor’s study majoring in physics at the Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia in 2013. During this study, I developed a particular interest in exploiting the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) phenomenon for biomedical applications as demonstrated in my thesis research under the supervision of Dr. Rahmat Hidayat. After earning my bachelor’s degree in 2017, I had the opportunity to continue my research at ITB as a research assistant to assist my supervisor in continuing study on fabrication, characterization, and simulation to excite surface plasmon resonance effects from 1-D and 2-D grating nanostructures.

Furthermore, my ‘thirst’ for knowledge led me to take a master’s program in Applied Physics at the University of Tsukuba, Japan in 2019 under the supervision of Prof. Yoshihiko Takeda from which I better understand the characteristics and applications of the localized SPR phenomenon from metal nanoparticles in various fields, especially in nonlinear optics. While studying here, I maintained an excellent academic record and worked at one prestigious research institution in Japan namely the National Institute of Material Sciences (NIMS) as a NIMS Junior Research. After graduating from the University of Tsukuba in March 2021, I was working in RIKEN to synthesize quantum dots (QDs) or colloidal nanocrystal materials.