Search results for "QUARTZ"

Recent improvements on micro-thermocouple based SThM

2017

The scanning thermal microscope (SThM) has become a versatile tool for local surface temperature mapping or measuring thermal properties of solid materials. In this article, we present recent improvements in a SThM system, based on a micro-wire thermocouple probe associated with a quartz tuning fork for contact strength detection. Some results obtained on an electrothermal micro-hotplate device, operated in active and passive modes, allow demonstrating its performance as a coupled force detection and thermal measurement system.

Quartz resonators for penning traps toward mass spectrometry on the heaviest ions

2020

We report on cyclotron frequency measurements on trapped 206,207Pb+ ions by means of the non-destructive Fourier-transform ion-cyclotron-resonance technique at room temperature. In a proof-of-principle experiment using a quartz crystal instead of a coil as a resonator, we have alternately carried out cyclotron frequency measurements for 206Pb+ and 207Pb+ with the sideband coupling method to obtain 21 cyclotron-frequency ratios with a statistical uncertainty of 6 × 10−7. The mean frequency ratio R¯ deviates by about 2σ from the value deduced from the masses reported in the latest Atomic Mass Evaluation. We anticipate that this shift is due to the ion–ion interaction between the simultaneousl…

A New LA ‐ ICP ‐ MS Method for Ti in Quartz: Implications and Application to High Pressure Rutile‐Quartz Veins from the Czech Erzgebirge

2016

Experimental determination of the pressure and temperature controls on Ti solubility in quartz provides a calibration of the Ti-in-quartz (TitaniQ) geothermometer applicable to geological conditions up to ~ 20 kbar. We present a new method for determining 48Ti mass fractions in quartz by LA-ICP-MS at the 1 μg g−1 level, relevant to quartz in HP-LT terranes. We suggest that natural quartz such as the low-CL rims of the Bishop Tuff quartz (determined by EPMA; 41 ± 2 μg g−1 Ti, 2s) is more suitable than NIST reference glasses as a reference material for low Ti mass fractions because matrix effects are limited, Ca isobaric interferences are avoided, and polyatomic interferences at mass 48 are i…

Kinetic control in the temperature-dependent sequential growth of surface-confined supramolecular copolymers

2017

We report the sequential growth of supramolecular copolymers on gold surfaces, using oppositely charged dendritic peptide amphiphiles. By including water-solubilising thermoresponsive chains in the monomer design, we observed non-linear effects in the temperature-dependent sequential growth. The step-wise copolymerisation process is characterised using temperature dependent SPR and QCM-D measurements. At higher temperatures, dehydration of peripheral oligoethylene glycol chains supports copolymer growth due to more favourable comonomer interactions. Both monomers incorporate methionine amino acids but remarkably, desorption of the copolymers via competing sulphur gold interactions with the …

Systematic Investigation of Resorcin[4]arene-Based Cavitands as Affinity Materials on Quartz Crystal Microbalances.

2017

Resorcin[4]arene cavitands are well-known supramolecular hosts, and their outstanding guest-binding abilities in solution have been studied in detail in recent decades. In a systematic approach, different resorcin[4]arene cavitands and container molecules are characterized as affinity materials for gravimetric sensing using high-fundamental-frequency quartz crystal microbalances. Analysis of their affinity toward a series of various analytes reveals a remarkable dependence of both selectivity and sensitivity on the shape, accessibility, and size of the cavity, along with their supramolecular interactions with the host molecules.

Microporous Triptycene‐Based Affinity Materials on Quartz Crystal Microbalances for Tracing of Illicit Compounds

2019

Triptycene-based organic molecules of intrinsic microporosity (OMIMs) with extended functionalized π-surfaces are excellent materials for gas sorption and separation. In this study, the affinities of triptycene-based OMIM affinity materials on 195 MHz high-fundamental-frequency quartz crystal microbalances (HFF-QCMs) for hazardous and illicit compounds such as piperonal and (-)-norephedrine were determined. Both new and existing porous triptycene-based affinity materials were investigated, resulting in very high sensitivities and selectivities that could be applied for sensing purposes. Remarkable results were found for safrole - a starting material for illicit compounds such as ecstasy. A …

Geochemical insights into the relationship of rock varnish and adjacent mineral dust fractions

2020

Abstract Rock varnishes are μm-thin, dark, manganese(Mn)-rich crusts that accrete in the order of few μm/ka on weathering-resistant lithologies. Although these crusts can form in all climates, they are best known in arid to semi-arid settings. Aeolian dust is understood as a major contributor to the distinct trace metal and REE enrichments in rock varnish. However, the exact proportions of abiotic and biotic formation mechanisms that may explain the oxidation-reactions of Mn2+ to Mn4+, present as Mn oxyhydroxides in the varnish, are still a matter of ongoing debate. We present here the first systematic study of trace element enrichment processes between the uppermost layer of the varnish se…

Quartz grains reveal sedimentary palaeoenvironment and past storm events: A case study from eastern Baltic

2018

Abstract Sediment record collected from the coastal lake serves as a powerful tool for reconstructing changes in palaeoenvironment and understanding the potential signals of past storminess. In this study, we use several proxies from sediment of the Holocene Thermal Maximum at coastal Lake Lilaste, Latvia. We focus on surface texture of quartz grains from the mineral inorganic fraction as indicators of depositional environments. We then use this as a proxy for potential storm transport and combine with information on granulometry, diatom stratigraphy and chronology to answer the question whether flux of quartz grains in the lake originated from the sea or from the land. Analyses in a binocu…

Calculating pressure with elastic geobarometry: A comparison of different elastic solutions with application to a calc-silicate gneiss from the Rhodo…

2020

Abstract Raman elastic geobarometry has increasingly been used complementary to metamorphic phase equilibria to estimate the conditions of recrystallization in metamorphic rocks. The procedure of applying Raman elastic barometry to host-inclusion mineral systems requires several steps that involve various assumptions. One of the most essential assumptions is that the mineral host-inclusion system behaves in an elastic and reversible manner. We discuss the discrepant results obtained by different authors employing different analytical solutions for elasticity and explore the assumptions lying behind each method. Furthermore, we evaluate numerically linear and non-linear elastic solutions and…

2018

Abstract. Sediments containing gas hydrate dispersed in the pore space are known to show a characteristic seismic anomaly which is a high attenuation along with increasing seismic velocities. Currently, this observation cannot be fully explained albeit squirt-flow type mechanisms on the microscale have been speculated to be the cause. Recent major findings from in situ experiments, using the gas in excess and water in excess formation method, and coupled with high-resolution synchrotron-based X-ray micro-tomography, have revealed the systematic presence of thin water films between the quartz grains and the encrusting hydrate. The data obtained from these experiments underwent an image proce…