
The BioDyn team (Bio-photonics and ultrafast molecular Dynamics) develops experimental tools for femtosecond spectroscopy in the field of physical chemistry, to investigate the photoreactivity of (bio)organic or metal-organic molecules in the condensed phase. Typical processes of interest are photoreactions enabling photo-electric or photo-mechanical energy conversions at the molecular scale. Such photoreactions have applications in material science (e.g. photovoltaic devices, molecular switches, or motors), but they are also at work in biological systems (photosynthesis, vision). Among photoreactions of interest are (i) photoinduced charge transfer or (ii) ultrafast photo-isomerization reactions. The investigation of ultrafast photoreactions with fs laser pulses reveals the interplay between (coherent) electronic or vibrational dynamics and environmental effects, and how this interplay controls the photoreactions yield.
Besides, in the 3rd research axis called “biophotonics,” we explore physical chemistry at the interface between nanoscience and living matter. More specifically, we investigate the environment-sensitive photoreactivity of organic compounds that may be exploited to probe local interactions in biomolecules. We also investigate ultrafast excitation energy transfer reactions in functional, synthetic nanoparticles behaving like efficient light-harvesting antennas.

Research Activities
Recent updates
- Mr. Jens Fellner has joined us as a new PhD student in the French-German reseach collaboration in light-matter interaction. His work consists of unravelling the physics of photo-isomerization process.
- Ms. Ana Tender has joined us as a new PhD student after her M2 internship with us. Her research, conducted within the framework of DEVILISH project, aims to understand exciton transport and interactions in biomimetic fluorescent nanoparticles using ultrafast spectroscopy and photon correlation techniques.
- Mr. Armel Jouan has joined us as a new postdoc researcher. His will contribute to the development of 2D transient absorption spectroscopy.
- As active members of the photonics community, we recently took part in the SPIE Photonics Europe conference, where we presented state‑of‑the‑art research on ultrafast phenomena. This participation offered a valuable opportunity to share our latest results, engage with leading researchers from around the world, and highlight the progress our team has made in understanding and controlling optical dynamics from nano- to femto-second timescales.

Position Open
- New PhD position focusing on the femtosecond spectroscopy of organic photoswitches. As part of the ANR-DFG “Femtoswitch” project, physicists and chemists are investigating whether the photoisomerization efficiency of certain photoswitches can be increased, and if there are basic rules behind doing so. A full presentation is available in the attached PDF. Link to the offer: https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/Doctorant/UMR7504-STEHAA-019/Default.aspx/lang=EN
Team members :






Recent publications :






