A Q&A interview from SciX explored a porous-particle Raman platform became an alternative to SERS, and why AI could unlock biochemical meaning in vibrational spectra.
News|Articles|May 3, 2024
Best of the Week: Intermolecular Interactions, Illegal Ivory Trade, Breaking Down Fentanyl
Author(s)Will Wetzel
Spectroscopy published stories on Raman, infrared spectroscopy, UV-vis, and more. Here are the top reads from the week.
Advertisement
This week, Spectroscopy published a variety of articles on the hottest topics in analytical spectroscopy and beyond, covering a wide range of spectroscopic techniques and how they are being applied in various application areas. Below, we’ve highlighted some of the most popular articles, according to our readers and subscribers. Happy reading!
Researchers collaborating from Peking University in China, Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan, and the University of Delaware in the United States have developed a new approach to analyzing intermolecular interactions using two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS). This method could lead to a deeper understanding of complex chemical processes and open doors to new discoveries in supramolecular chemistry.
The illegal ivory trade has been primarily responsible for the dramatic depletion of endangered elephant populations in Africa and Asia. In this study, researchers from the University of Bristol shows how Raman spectroscopy can be used to distinguish between ivory belonging to elephants or mammoths. The illegal ivory trade has been primarily responsible for the dramatic depletion of endangered elephant populations in Africa and Asia. This study, led by Rebecca F. Shepherd from the University of Bristol, examined how Raman spectroscopy can help in species identification of ivory.
Scientists from Florida International University and Escola Universitària Salesiana de Sarrià Passeig are working on a novel approach to differentiate the structure of fentanyl analogues by using SERS as a technique to analyze fentanyl analogues. This approach uses Raman spectroscopy with colloidal metal nanoparticles, allowing for highly sensitive spectroscopic readings. Two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) is gaining traction among chemists for its ability to examine intermolecular interactions in complex systems. However, analyzing these interactions can be challenging due to overlapping spectral peaks.
The first quarter of 2024 also brought about some newly developed content projects at Spectroscopy. These new projects are designed to present the technical information our audience craves in a more digestible and readable format.
Over the past quarter, we have expanded our interview coverage by reaching out to different subject matter experts (SMEs) in the field. Our goal in doing so was to cover a wider breadth of topics for our audience, as well as shine a light on the ongoing research happening in spectroscopy and related applications.
Dark tea, particularly Pu-erh ripe tea, is renowned for its rich content of theabrownins, yet industrial production of these compounds has remained an ongoing challenge. A recent study examined the ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) and infrared (IR) spectra of theabrownins in dark tea, revealing more about the theoretical foundation for the industrial-scale production of theabrownins.
References
(1) Workman, Jr. J. Unlocking Supramolecular Chemistry: A New 2D-COS Approach to Intermolecular Interactions. Spectroscopy. Available at:
(2) Wetzel, W. Using Raman Spectroscopy to Distinguish Elephant and Mammoth Ivory. Spectroscopy. Available at:
(3) Workman, Jr. J. Breaking Down Fentanyl: New Technique Offers Promising Results in Differentiating Analogues. Spectroscopy. Available at:
(4) Wetzel, W. Spectroscopy Spotlight: Highlighting Interviews from the Past Quarter. Spectroscopy. Available at:
(5) Wetzel, W. Characterizing Theabrownins in Dark Tea Using Ultraviolet-Visible and Infrared Spectroscopy. Spectroscopy. Available at:
Advertisement
Related to this article
Jürgen Popp, winner of this year’s Ellis R. Lippincott Award, discusses the regulatory, cost, and workflow hurdles of moving Raman spectroscopy into hospitals.
This column shows that a Raman plate reader paired with partial least squares regression can simultaneously quantify glucose, fructose, sucrose, and ethanol in yeast fermentation samples, using turbidity-matched calibration standards to correct for yeast-induced turbidity, and offers a rapid, label-free, high-throughput method for tracking sugar consumption and ethanol production in strain screening, media optimization, and process development.
Mammograms can find breast microcalcifications but can’t tell whether they are likely benign or malignant.
In a SciX interview, Marc Porter covered a lot of ground, from a student-driven pivot into immunoassays to a baseball analogy for Stokes and anti-Stokes scattering, and shares the open questions he is still chasing.
Microspectroscopy, the marriage of spectroscopic chemical identification with microscopic spatial resolution, has advanced from Perkin-Elmer's first commercial infrared microspectrometer in 1953 to today's nanoscale AFM-IR probes, synchrotron-brightness infrared beamlines, and compact hyperspectral tissue imaging devices being developed for AI-assisted cancer detection.
In this Q&A, we recap the October edition of “What’s Nu,” which covered topics such as how novel spectroscopic and analytical methods are transforming environmental monitoring, medical treatment, and accessibility in scientific research.
In this Q&A article, we highlight several prominent researchers being recognized at the 2026 SciX Conference for their significant contributions to spectroscopy and photonics and discuss what these researchers talked about at the conference.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Trending on Spectroscopy Online
1
Advances in Spectroscopy for Pharma and Biopharmaceutical Analysis Symposium
2
The Latest in Surgical Raman Probes, Sepsis Diagnostics, and the Personalized Optical Twin
3
From Attosecond Pulses to Handheld Analyzers: The Widening Reach of X-Ray Analytical Techniques
4
Monitoring Sugar Consumption and Ethanol Production During Yeast Fermentation Using a Raman Plate Reader and Multivariate Analysis
5