Instrumentation Development: Label-free and rapid 3D-nanostructure ultrathin-layer birefringence imaging chromatography

With support from the Division of Chemistry - Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program, David Hage from the Department of Chemistry and Tino Hofmann from the Department of Electrical Engineering and their students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will develop instrumentation for label-free and rapid detection in ultrathin-layer imaging chromatography by using highly-oriented 3D nanostructure ultrathin-layer supports in combination with transmission birefringence imaging detection schemes. This approach, which is based on ellipsometric measurements, will use the detection of spatial and time-resolved microscopic images of linear birefringence variations in nanoengineered supports upon the interactions of these supports with analytes. Chromatography methods analyze mixtures by separating them into their components. Ultrathin-layer liquid chromatography (UTLC) methods separate components using their interactions with very thin, specially engineered (nanostructured) films. Often these methods require that the mixture components be labeled or tagged so that they can be detected. This work is expected to reduce the limit of detection of UTLC by two orders of magnitude when compared to current state-of-the-art label-free UTLC systems; this will be a groundbreaking advancement in this technology. The application of this separation and imaging system, which will have essentially universal applicability to small chemical targets, will benefit chemical analysis in many fields, including biochemical, environmental, and pharmaceutical testing. In addition to the significant advantages of the new measurement scheme compared to current UTLC systems, the increased sensitivity to minute amounts of chemicals that are adsorbed to nanostructured surfaces will also provide crucial information about the separation and flow-based properties of the nanostructured surfaces. This project provides a unique opportunity for students to participate in the development of new instrumentation and interdisciplinary research.