Robotic Arm Probes Chemistry of 3-D Objects by Mass Spectrometry

Robotic Arm Probes Chemistry of 3-D Objects by Mass Spectrometry

When life on Earth was first getting started, simple molecules bonded together into the precursors of modern genetic material. 

A catalyst would have been needed, but enzymes had not yet evolved. 

One theory is that the catalytic minerals on a meteorite’s surface could have jump-started life’s first chemical reactions. 

But scientists need a way to directly analyze these rough, irregularly shaped surfaces. 

A new robotic system at Georgia Tech’s Center for Chemical Evolution could soon let scientists better simulate and analyze the chemical reactions of early Earth on the surface of real rocks to further test this theory.

A sharp Eye for Molecular Fingerprints

MPQ-scientists record broad absorption spectra on a microsecond scale with two laser frequency combs.

A team of scientists around Dr. Nathalie Picqué and Prof. Theodor W. Hänsch at the Laser Spectroscopy Division of the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics (Garching), in a collaboration with the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich and the Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d’Orsay (France) now reports on a new method of real-time identification and quantification of molecular species (Nature Communications 5, 3375 – Feb. 27, 2014).

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Portion of a dual-comb real-time absorption spectrum of acetylene in the near-infrared region. While the spectrum without the adaptive sampling (blind sampling) is strongly distorted, the adaptive spectrum accurately reveals the molecular profiles. (Graphic: MPQ, Laser Spectroscopy Division)

What is EPR Spectroscopy?

Electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy, also referred to as electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, is a versatile, nondestructive analytical technique which can be used for a variety of applications including: oxidation and reduction processes, biradicals and triplet state molecules, reaction kinetics, as well as numerous additional applications in biology, medicine and physics. However, this technique can only be applied to samples having one or more unpaired electrons. For more details click here.

Image Credit: http://web.nmsu.edu

Credit: http://epr.cm.utexas.edu

Introduction to Mössbauer Spectroscopy: Part 1

The technique of Mössbauer spectroscopy is widely used in mineralogy to examine the valence state of iron, which is found in nature as Fe⁰ (metal), Fe²⁺, and Fe³⁺, as well as the type of coordination polyhedron occupied by iron atoms (trigonal, tetrahedral, octahedral, etc.). It is sometimes used to determine redox ratios in glasses and (less successfully) in rocks. Mössbauer spectroscopy is also used to assist in the identification of Fe oxide phases on the basis of their magnetic properties. For more details click here.

Credit: M. Darby Dyar, Department of Astronomy, Mount Holyoke College

Infrared Spectroscopy

The light our eyes see is but a small part of a broad spectrum of electromagnetic radiation. On the immediate high energy side of the visible spectrum lies the ultraviolet, and on the low energy side is the infrared. The portion of the infrared region most useful for analysis of organic compounds is not immediately adjacent to the visible spectrum, but is that having a wavelength range from 2,500 to 16,000 nm, with a corresponding frequency range from 1.9*10¹³ to 1.2*10¹⁴ Hz. For more details click here.

Courtesy: Dr. Reusch, http://www2.chemistry.msu.edu

Raman Spectroscopy

It is the shift in wavelength of the inelastically scattered radiation that provides the chemical and structural information. Raman shifted photons can be of either higher or lower energy, depending upon the vibrational state of the molecule under study. For more click here.

 

Credit: National University of Singapore

Credit: http://www.andor.com/learning-academy

Introduction to Spectroscopy

Spectroscopy is the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. For more click here.

Courtesy: http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/