Yukihiro Ozaki

In this tutorial article, Yukihiro Ozaki explores the recent advancements and broadening applications of tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS), a cutting-edge technique that integrates scanning probe microscopy (SPM) with surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). TERS enables highly localized chemical analysis at the nano- to subnano-scale, achieving spatial resolution well beyond the diffraction limit of light. Ozaki highlights the versatility of TERS in various experimental environments—ranging from ambient air to ultrahigh vacuum and electrochemical systems—and its powerful utility in fields such as single-molecule detection, biomolecular mechanism studies, nanomaterial characterization, and high-resolution imaging.

This review explores the latest advancements in near-infrared (NIR) imaging technology, detailing its diverse applications such as tracking solvent diffusion in polymers, portable analysis systems in pharmaceuticals, high-speed polymer monitoring, and NIR imaging for fish embryo development research.

In celebration of Spectroscopy’s 35th Anniversary, leading experts discuss important issues and challenges in analytical spectroscopy.

This article reviews the state-of-the-art of far-ultraviolet (FUV) spectroscopy of solid and liquid phases. FUV spectroscopy is rich in information about electronic structure and transitions of a molecule, but this region has been employed to investigate mainly for the electronic states and structure of gas molecules because the absorptivity is very high in the FUV region. To overcome this difficulty we have developed a totally new FUV spectrometer based on the attenuated total reflection (ATR) technique. ATR-FUV spectroscopy has paved a new avenue for condensed matter FUV spectroscopy. This article demonstrates that FUV holds considerable promise not only in basic science such as studies of electronic structure of molecules, hydrogen bonding, hydration, and adsorption of water and aqueous solutions, but also practical applications, such as on-line analysis, geochemical and environmental analyis, semiconductor research and surface analysis.