Suran, Swathi and Bharadwaj, Krishna and Raghavan, Srinivasan and Varma, Manoj M (2016) Bright-field Nanoscopy: Visualizing Nano-structures with Localized Optical Contrast Using a Conventional Microscope. In: SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 6 .
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Abstract
Most methods for optical visualization beyond the diffraction limit rely on fluorescence emission by molecular tags. Here, we report a method for visualization of nanostructures down to a few nanometers using a conventional bright-field microscope without requiring additional molecular tags such as fluorophores. The technique, Bright-field Nanoscopy, is based on the strong thickness dependent color of ultra-thin germanium on an optically thick gold film. We demonstrate the visualization of grain boundaries in chemical vapour deposited single layer graphene and the detection of single 40 nm Ag nanoparticles. We estimate a size detection limit of about 2 nm using this technique. In addition to visualizing nano-structures, this technique can be used to probe fluid phenomena at the nanoscale, such as transport through 2D membranes. We estimated the water transport rate through a 1 nm thick polymer film using this technique, as an illustration. Further, the technique can also be extended to study the transport of specific ions in the solution. It is anticipated that this technique will find use in applications ranging from single-nanoparticles resolved sensing to studying nanoscale fluid-solid interface phenomena.
| Item Type: | Journal Article |
|---|---|
| Publication: | SCIENTIFIC REPORTS |
| Publisher: | NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP |
| Additional Information: | Copy right for this article belongs to the NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP, MACMILLAN BUILDING, 4 CRINAN ST, LONDON N1 9XW, ENGLAND |
| Department/Centre: | Division of Electrical Sciences > Electrical Communication Engineering Division of Interdisciplinary Sciences > Centre for Nano Science and Engineering |
| Date Deposited: | 11 Jun 2016 05:58 |
| Last Modified: | 11 Jun 2016 05:58 |
| URI: | http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/53894 |
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