Biological microlasers, which utilize lasing emission as a sensing signal, has recently emerged as a promising approach in biotechnology. As such, biolasers with functionality are of great significance for the detection of tiny molecular interactions in biological systems. Despite considerable progress achieved in biomaterial-based microlasers, the ability to manipulate nanoscaled biostructures and functionalize molecules in microcavity represents a grand challenge. Herein we report the development of hydrogel microlasers by exploiting the versatility and controllability of hydrogels, where whispering-gallery-mode lasing was achieved by printing hydrogel droplets on a mirror. Lasing behaviors and fundamental characteristics of hydrogel lasers were explored under various water-monomer ratios and crosslinking degrees. Furthermore, hydrogel lasing microarray was developed, providing a novel approach to study molecular interactions within the 3D hydrogel network structure. To demonstrate the potential application and functionality, FRET peptide lasing was exploited for molecular analysis. Single-mode FRET laser emission was achieved by tuning the Forster distance in hydrogel droplets. Finally, different types of biomolecules were encapsulated to form biolasing. These findings not only highlight the ability of hydrogel biolasers for high-throughput biomolecular analysis but also provides deep insights into the relationship between biostructure and laser physics.
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