Dye-stained
micrometer-sized polymer beads are important tools
in the life sciences with applications in biomedical, biochemical,
and clinical research. Here, bead-based assays are increasingly used,
for example, in DNA sequencing and the detection of autoimmune diseases
or pathogenic microorganisms. Moreover, stained beads are employed
as calibration tools for fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry
methods with increasing complexity. To address the requirements concerning
the relevant fluorescence features, the spectroscopic properties of
representative polymer beads with diameters ranging from about 1 to
10 μm stained with varying concentrations of rhodamine 6G were
systematically assessed. The observed dependence of the spectral properties,
fluorescence decay kinetics, and fluorescence quantum yields on bead
size and dye loading concentration is attributed to different fluorescence
characteristics of fluorophores located in the particle core and near-surface
dye molecules. Supported by the fluorescence anisotropy measurements,
the origin of the observed alteration of fluorescence features is
ascribed to a combination of excitation energy transfer and polarity-related
effects that are especially pronounced at the interface of the bead
and the surrounding medium. The results of our studies underline the
need to carefully control and optimize all parameters that can affect
the fluorescence properties of the dye-stained beads.