What’s New in Spectroscopy?

Forecasting rocks. On February 28, 2021, the Winchcombe meteorite became the most widely recorded carbonaceous chondrite fall to date. Now, a research team from Germany and the UK decided to analyze the meteorite aiming to characterize its organic composition – potentially revealing details about the key elements involved in the delivery of prebiotic molecules to the early Earth. Employing high-spatial resolution spectroscopy techniques – to minimize processing of the sample – the researchers identified nitrogen-containing compounds, such as amino acids and N-heterocycles. The authors concluded that the extraterrestrial amino acid found in Winchcombe has also been detected in Ryugu – a key asteroid which was most recently analyzed by Timothy Glotch. 

Finding nanoplastics. Researchers from Texas A&M University and the University of Notre Dame collaborated to examine plastic nanoparticles in water samples obtained from two open oceans with shrinking surface bubble deposition (SSBD). The technique was originally developed for DNA analysis combining electron microscopy and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy and repurposed for this study to enable nanoplastic size and morphology determination – a measure that current techniques, such as gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy, cannot provide. The team discovered nanoplastics made of nylon, polystyrene, and polyethylene terephthalate. “The nanoplastics we found in the ocean were distinctively different from laboratory-synthesized ones,” said corresponding author Tengfei Luo in a press release.  “Understanding the shape and chemistry of the actual nanoplastics is an essential first step in determining their toxicity and devising ways to mitigate it.” Now, the scientists are hopeful their study will help design and conduct more accurate toxicity studies. 

Low-energy; large results. Organic semiconductors are a crucial component of several electronic devices. In hopes of determining the binding energies for influencing the behaviors of these materials, Japanese researchers employed low-energy inverse photoelectron spectroscopy. Their research revealed unexpected correlations that could provide applications in bio-related materials. “Given the fundamental nature of our research, we expect long-term and persistent effects, both visible and invisible, on real-life applications,” said Hiroyuki Yoshida in the press release.

Gluing history together. Thanks to recent research employing energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), transmission infrared spectroscopy, and micro-computed tomography (microCT) to analyze Neanderthal stone tools, we now know more about the cultural evolution of ancestors. The team focused their study on the ancient adhesives used in the tools – arguing that it may be the “best material evidence of cultural evolution and cognitive processes in early humans.” The researchers discovered ochre-based adhesives – a surprising finding, as such tool making practice has only been recognized in African H. Sapiens and not Neanderthals before. Could this be a case of acculturation? The authors are unsure, but the results demonstrate that “the willingness to invest in tools that represented an elevated cost documents the complexity of late Middle Paleolithic hominin behavior.”