Sensitive light-scattering detection-magnetophoretic acceleration mass analysis of single microparticles in an atmosphere.
Optically detected magnetophoretic acceleration mass analysis of an individual micro-particle in an atmosphere has been remarkably improved in sensitivity by using a reflective microscope objective, by which forward scattered light from a particle could be effectively collected. From the light-scattering simulation, the detection limit for the radius of a micro-particle was estimated to be smaller than 0.4 μm, and about 60 times intensity enhancement was observed for a polystyrene particle with a radius of 2.8 μm. For both paramagnetic and diamagnetic micro-particles, the mass magnetic susceptibility and the relaxation time could be determined without knowing any parameters of the particles. From the relaxation time, the mass of a particle was obtained if the radius or the density of the particle was known. For a test sample silica particles were used to adsorb paramagnetic dysprosium(III), the surface concentration of dysprosium(III) on a single particle could be successfully determined by use of this method.
Arase
Mariko
M
Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka, 560-0043, Japan.
Suwa
Masayori
M
Watarai
Hitoshi
H