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New Imaging Method Offers Breakthrough in Forest Soil and Tree Analysis
May 5th 2025A new study published in Geoderma Regional by J. A. Arias-Rios and colleagues at IFAB demonstrates that near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is a rapid, cost-effective tool for assessing soil and tree traits critical to forest ecosystem monitoring and management.
Best of the Week: National Space Day, Battery Analysis
May 2nd 2025Top articles published this week include interviews from our National Space Day content series, a news story about satellite-based spectroscopy, and an interview about battery analysis conducted at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.
Using Spectroscopy to Measure Geochemical Transformations of Gypsum for Ca-Sulfate Detection on Mars
May 2nd 2025Research was conducted exploring the dehydration pathways of gypsum (CaSO₄·2H₂O) and its interactions with chloride (Cl) salts under a range of thermal and environmental conditions relevant to Earth and Mars.Spectroscopy spoke to Merve Yeşilbaş, corresponding author of a paper based on this work (1), about the research.
The Role of LIBS in ChemCam and SuperCam: An Interview with Kelsey Williams, Part III
May 2nd 2025In this extended Q&A interview, we sit down with Kelsey Williams, a postdoctoral researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), who is working on planetary instrumentation using spectroscopic techniques such as laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and laser ablation molecular isotopic spectrometry (LAMIS). In Part III, Williams goes into detail about ChemCam and SuperCam and how LIBS is used in both these instruments.
Unexpected Discoveries in Space
May 2nd 2025Gabi Wenzel, a visiting scientist at the Center for Astrophysics, Harvard & Smithsonian, shares how spectroscopy has led to unexpected discoveries in her research on the molecular building blocks of the universe. Wenzel's research focuses on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their interactions with light.
An Enhanced Approach to Analytical Instrument and System Qualification
May 1st 2025United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) general chapter <1058> on Analytical Instrument Qualification (AIQ) now has a new title from a draft update for public comment: Analytical Instrument and System Qualification (AISQ). A new three-phase integrated lifecycle phase approach to qualification and validation is described. But will laboratories and suppliers implement it?
New Optical Modeling Method Advances Thin Film Analysis Using Spectroscopic Ellipsometry
April 30th 2025Researchers at Zhejiang University have developed an advanced optical modeling approach using spectroscopic ellipsometry, significantly enhancing the non-destructive analysis of amorphous silicon oxide thin films.
Inside the Laboratory: The Weker Group at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
April 29th 2025"Inside the Laboratory" is a joint series with LCGC and Spectroscopy profiling analytical scientists and their research groups at universities worldwide. This series spotlights the current chromatographic and spectroscopic research their groups are conducting and the importance of their research in analytical chemistry and specific industries. In this edition of “Inside the Laboratory,” Johanna Nelson Weker of SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory discusses her laboratory’s work in battery analysis.
Chinese Researchers Develop Dual-Channel Probe for Biothiol Detection
April 28th 2025Researchers at Qiqihar Medical University have developed a dual-channel fluorescent probe, PYL-NBD, that enables highly sensitive, rapid, and selective detection of biothiols in food, pharmaceuticals, and living organisms.
The fNIRS Glossary Project: A Community-Sourced Glossary of Key Terms
April 28th 2025Established to develop a community-sourced glossary covering key functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) terms, including those related to the continuous-wave (CW), frequency-domain (FD), and time-domain (TD) NIRS techniques, the fNIRS Glossary Project features over 300 terms categorized into six key domains: analysis, experimental design, hardware, neuroscience, mathematics, and physics. It also includes abbreviations, symbols, synonyms, references, alternative definitions, and figures where relevant.
Best of the Week: AI and IoT for Pollution Monitoring, High Speed Laser MS
April 25th 2025Top articles published this week include a preview of our upcoming content series for National Space Day, a news story about air quality monitoring, and an announcement from Metrohm about their new Midwest office.