Maximal Interaction of Electromagnetic Radiation with Corona-Virions

TL;DR

This paper investigates the optical properties of corona-virions in the mid-infrared range using Mie theory, identifying optimal conditions for electromagnetic interaction that could aid viral neutralization techniques.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed modeling approach for corona-virions considering realistic dielectric properties and identifies specific resonances for effective electromagnetic interaction.

Findings

Optical extinction resonances are identified in the mid-infrared range.

Resonances are robust against size and background variations.

Potential applications in viral disinfection and neutralization.

Abstract

Absorption and scattering of the impinging electromagnetic waves are the two fundamental operations describing the energy exchange of any, organic or inorganic, particle with its environment. In the case of virion cells, substantial extinction power, counting both absorbing and scattering effects, is a prerequisite for performing a variety of coupling actions against the viral particles and, thus, a highly sought-after feature. By considering realistic dispersion for the dielectric permittivity of proteins and a core-shell modeling allowing for rigorous formulation via Mie theory, we report optical extinction resonances for corona-virions at mid-infrared range that are not significantly perturbed by changes in the objects size or the background host. Our findings indicate the optimal regime for interaction of photonic radiation with viral particles and may assist towards the development of equipment for thermal damage, disintegration or neutralization of coronavirus cells.