Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Photoinduced Force Microscopy as an Efficient Method Towards the Detection of Nanoplastics

Researchers demonstrated photoinduced force microscopy as an effective method for detecting and chemically characterizing individual nanoplastic particles, overcoming limitations of conventional techniques that lack either sufficient spatial resolution or spectroscopic capability at the nanoscale.

2021 Chemistry - Methods 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Far-field super-resolution chemical microscopy

Researchers reviewed recent advances in "far-field chemical microscopy," a group of techniques that create detailed molecular maps of materials without needing dyes or labels, while also breaking the traditional limits of optical resolution. These super-resolution chemical imaging methods are opening new windows for studying biological systems, identifying environmental contaminants like microplastics, and inspecting materials at the nanoscale.

2023 Light Science & Applications 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Boxcar Averaging Scanning Nonlinear Dielectric Microscopy

This paper describes improvements to scanning nonlinear dielectric microscopy combined with atomic force microscopy for high-resolution surface characterization. The technique is relevant to materials science rather than environmental microplastic research.

2022 Nanomaterials 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Advances in assembled micro- and nanoscale mechanical contact probes

This review examined advances in assembled micro- and nanoscale mechanical contact probes used for characterizing surface properties and behavior, covering their development, diversification, and applications in physical and biological science for mapping surface and interface phenomena at nanometer resolution.

2022 Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Vibrational photothermal imaging from single molecules to human subjects (Conference Presentation)

This conference presentation reviews vibrational photothermal microscopy—a label-free technique using infrared pump and visible probe beams—as a tool for imaging chemical bonds in biological systems including bacteria, cells, and organisms. The technique enables real-time chemical mapping without fluorescent labels and has been applied to detect micro- and nanoplastics in biological tissues.

2025
Article Tier 2

Spectroscopic Microtomography in the Short-Wave Infrared Wavelength Range

Researchers demonstrated spectroscopic microtomography in the short-wave infrared range using digital holographic tomography, achieving 1.51 micron resolution for 3D chemical and structural imaging of microscopic specimens including human hair and sea urchin embryos.

2023 Sensors 4 citations
Review Tier 2

Principles and Applications of Vibrational Spectroscopic Imaging in Plant Science: A Review

This review covers the principles and applications of vibrational spectroscopic imaging techniques including infrared and Raman spectroscopy in plant science, highlighting their capacity to provide spatially distributed chemical information from organ to sub-cellular scales without destructive sampling. The authors survey applications across plant biochemistry, structural analysis, and secondary metabolite localization, demonstrating the utility of these methods for both basic and applied botanical research.

2020 Frontiers in Plant Science 81 citations
Article Tier 2

A Review of the Current State of Magnetic Force Microscopy to Unravel the Magnetic Properties of Nanomaterials Applied in Biological Systems and Future Directions for Quantum Technologies

This review covers magnetic force microscopy, a technique that can detect and map magnetic properties at the nanoscale in biological systems. Researchers highlight its applications in studying magnetic nanoparticles used in drug delivery, cell imaging, and biosensing. While primarily a methods review, the technology has potential relevance for characterizing magnetic micro- and nanoparticles, including some types of environmental contaminants.

2023 Nanomaterials 77 citations
Article Tier 2

Overcoming resolution limitations: Spectroscopy of sub-30 nm nanoplastics

Researchers developed a multi-technique approach combining standard micro-Raman spectroscopy with atomic force microscopy to characterize nanoplastics as small as 25 nm, achieving a mass detection limit of 8.6 attograms and demonstrating the capability to obtain single-particle spectra from sub-30 nm polystyrene nanoparticles.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Photothermal Microscopy and Spectroscopy with Nanomechanical Resonators

This paper is not relevant to microplastics — it describes advances in nanomechanical photothermal microscopy and spectroscopy as analytical techniques for measuring light absorption at the nanoscale, with no application to plastic pollution.

2023 The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Overcoming resolution limitations: Spectroscopy of sub-30 nm nanoplastics

Researchers developed a multi-technique approach combining standard micro-Raman spectroscopy with atomic force microscopy to characterize nanoplastics as small as 25 nm, achieving a mass detection limit of 8.6 attograms and demonstrating the capability to obtain single-particle spectra from sub-30 nm polystyrene nanoparticles.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Performance of a Portable FT-NIR MEMS Spectrometer to Predict Soil Features

Researchers evaluated a portable FT-NIR spectrometer based on micro-electromechanical systems technology for predicting soil properties, finding it performed comparably to laboratory instruments for several key soil features while offering the advantages of portability and lower cost for agricultural monitoring.

2022 Soil Systems 28 citations
Article Tier 2

Tuning the infrared resonance of thermal emission from metasurfaces working in near-infrared

Researchers designed and tested a metasurface — a precisely engineered array of tiny metal structures — that can control the wavelength of infrared light emitted or absorbed, demonstrating that adjusting the geometry and orientation of the structures allows fine-tuned control of the thermal emission spectrum for potential sensing and imaging applications.

2023 Scientific Reports 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoscale infrared, thermal and mechanical properties of aged microplastics revealed by an atomic force microscopy coupled with infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) technique

Researchers used atomic force microscopy coupled with infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) to characterize nanoscale infrared, thermal, and mechanical properties of TiO2-pigmented microplastics before and after aging, finding that weathering roughened surfaces and altered carbonyl and methylene band intensities.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 98 citations
Article Tier 2

Picogram-Level Nanoplastic Analysis with Nanoelectromechanical System Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy: NEMS-FTIR

Researchers developed a NEMS-FTIR approach combining nanoelectromechanical systems with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for chemical characterization and quantification of nanoplastics, achieving picogram-level detection limits ranging from 101 to 353 pg for polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyvinyl chloride nanoplastics with diameters from 54 to 262 nm.

2025 ArXiv.org
Article Tier 2

Analysis of environmental microplastics by vibrational microspectroscopy: FTIR, Raman or both?

This study reviewed analytical methods for environmental microplastic analysis using vibrational microspectroscopy — comparing FTIR, Raman, and related techniques — and provided guidance on method selection for different sample types and research questions.

2016 Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 975 citations
Article Tier 2

A Universal Approach to Mie Scatter Correction inFTIR Analysis of Microsized Samples

Researchers developed a universal computational approach to correct for Mie scattering distortions in FTIR infrared microspectroscopy of microsized samples, including microplastics. The method recovers accurate chemical information from spectra that would otherwise be distorted by optical effects from particle size and shape.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Sub-10 nm Nanoparticle Detection Using Multi-Technique-Based Micro-Raman Spectroscopy

Researchers combined standard micro-Raman spectroscopy with atomic force microscopy to detect individual nanoparticles as small as 9 nm — a size range that until now required far more complex and time-consuming instruments. This advance matters for microplastic research because plastics continuously fragment into nanoplastics, and having accessible tools to characterise these ultra-small particles is essential for understanding their environmental distribution and biological uptake.

2023 Polymers 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Broadband background-free stimulated Raman scattering microspectroscopy with a novel frequency modulation scheme

Researchers developed broadband background-free stimulated Raman scattering microspectroscopy using a novel laser system, enabling chemical imaging without the fluorescence background that limits conventional Raman measurements. The technique offers improved sensitivity for detecting microplastics and other materials in complex biological samples.

2024 APL Photonics 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Atomic spectrometry update: review of advances in the analysis of metals, chemicals and materials

This review covers recent advances in analytical methods for characterising advanced materials, metals, fuels, lubricants, nanostructures, ceramics, and chemicals, encompassing X-ray, ICP, LIBS, mass spectrometry, synchrotron-based, and surface ablation techniques applied across industrial and research contexts.

2021 Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Super-resolution imaging of micro- and nanoplastics using confocal Raman with Gaussian surface fitting and deconvolution

Researchers used confocal Raman imaging with Gaussian surface fitting to achieve super-resolution visualization of micro- and nanoplastics beyond the optical diffraction limit, enabling identification and imaging of nanoplastic particles smaller than conventional Raman microscopy can resolve.

2023 Talanta 26 citations
Article Tier 2

PhotothermalInfrared Imaging of Nanoplastics in HumanCells with Nanoscale Resolution

Researchers used photothermal infrared imaging with nanoscale resolution to detect and localize polystyrene nanoparticles inside individual human fibroblast and glioblastoma cells, overcoming the size limitation of conventional FTIR and enabling sub-100 nm nanoplastic localization in cells.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Identification and visualisation of microplastics/ nanoplastics by Raman imaging (ii): Smaller than the diffraction limit of laser?

Researchers examined whether confocal Raman microscopy can identify and visualize nanoplastics smaller than the diffraction limit of the laser, analyzing the lateral intensity distribution of Raman signals from nanoplastics ranging from approximately 30 to 600 nm in diameter. The study found that while imaging resolution is limited by diffraction, chemical identification of sub-diffraction-limit nanoplastics remains possible.

2020 Water Research 112 citations
Article Tier 2

Controlled Detection for Micro- and Nanoplastic Spectroscopy/Photometry Integration Using Infrared Radiation

Researchers proposed a controlled infrared spectroscopy/photometry integration system for detecting micro- and nanoplastics, using a diffraction grating controller to tune the geometry etendue of the display unit and yield a universal spectrometer/photometer capable of identifying plastic particles across size ranges.

2025 Optics