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Infrared Vibrational Nano-Spectroscopy: Pushing Sensitivity and Application Space for Bio-imaging


EMSL Project ID
48682

Abstract

We request access to the scattering scanning near-field optical microscope (s-SNOM) we have developed during a partner proposal, and scanning electron microscope / focused ion beam (SEM/FIB) facility. We propose to perform nanoscale infrared vibrational chemical spectroscopy and imaging on molecular nanostructures and biological molecules. Using FIB to modify s-SNOM probes will allow us to push sensitivity and spatial resolution of the setup to the single molecule limit. From probing nanoscopic molecular ensembles we gain insight into structure, coupling, and dynamics otherwise hidden in macroscopic ensemble measurements. Our work will include making the s-SNOM setup more broadly available for the user program, by developing user protocols, training staff, and making some hardware
modifications to allow for easier optical alignment and more routine data acquisition.

Project Details

Start Date
2014-11-04
End Date
2015-09-30
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Bernd Raschke
Institution
University of Colorado at Boulder

Team Members

Brian O'callahan
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Joanna Atkin
Institution
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Related Publications

Muller EA, B Pollard, and MB Raschke. 2015. "Infrared Chemical Nano-Imaging: Accessing Structure, Coupling, and Dynamics on Molecular Length Scales." Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters 6(7):1275–1284. doi:10.1021/acs.jpclett.5b00108
Muller M ,Kravtsov V ,Paarmann A ,Raschke B M,Ernstorfer R 2016. "Nanofocused Plasmon-Driven Sub-10 fs Electron Point Source" ACS Photonics 3(4):611–619. 10.1021/acsphotonics.5b00710