Principles of Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Abstract

The first edition of Principles was published in 1983, and the second edition 16 years later in 1999. At that time I thought the third edition would not be written until 2010 or later. However, the technology of fluorescence has advanced at an accelerating pace. Single-molecule detec- tion and fluorescence-correlation spectroscopy are becom- ing almost routine. New classes of probes have appeared, such as the semiconductor nanoparticles, or QDots, and genetically engineered green fluorescent probes. Addition- ally, it is now becoming possible to control the excited states of fluorophores, rather than relying only on sponta- neous emission.