Fig. 5. Summary of multiscale Si structures for microbiology studies and bioengineering applications.

Optically controlled Si structures output transient thermal signals. Resulting thermal spatial gradients are sensed by bacteria, triggering rapid intercellular signaling. In addition to the fundamental studies, our Si-bacteria platform will enable a wide spectrum of applications including single-cell manipulation based on photothermally induced convective flows, cellular recording of chemical patterns based on the temperature-gradient Ca²⁺ activation, and biofilm disruption based on chemical-mechanical coupling.