Analytical chemistry articles within Nature Communications

Featured

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nanoscale plasmonic assemblies are known to display exceptionally strong chiral optical activity. Here, the authors assemble gold nanorods into DNA-bridged chiral systems, and demonstrate their high efficiency for DNA detection at very low concentrations.

    • Wei Ma
    • , Hua Kuang
    •  & Nicholas A. Kotov

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Colorimetric differentiation of solvents is difficult as many solvatochromic molecules exhibit broad overlaps in their absorption and emission bands. Here, the authors present a ‘turn-on’ type sensor in which the colorimetric sensor responds only when its protective layer is disrupted by a specific solvent.

    • Jung Lee
    • , Hyun Taek Chang
    •  & Jong-Man Kim

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hyperpolarization of chemical nuclei is known to greatly increase sensitivity to characterization by magnetic resonance imaging. Here a new platform that allows for the design of a number of hyperpolarized probes for chemical sensing applications is demonstrated.

    • Hiroshi Nonaka
    • , Ryunosuke Hata
    •  & Shinsuke Sando

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Chemical reactions on femtolitre scales are necessary to study confined biological processes. Here, the authors use a microfluidic pen lithography technique to perform a series of discrete femtoscale acid-base and synthetic reactions, and crystallizations on a surface with high registration accuracy.

    • Carlos Carbonell
    • , Kyriakos C. Stylianou
    •  & Daniel Maspoch

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The enantiopurity of chiral compounds is key in determining their activity or therapeutic action. Here, the authors present a versatile NMR method of enantiomeric excess determination using a symmetrical achiral molecule as resolving agent, based on complexation with analyte, without formation of diastereomers.

    • Jan Labuta
    • , Shinsuke Ishihara
    •  & Jonathan P. Hill

  • Article |

    Rapid, highly multiplexed molecular detection platforms may enable more specific and effective disease diagnosis. Here, a solution-based circuit is reported that enables the analysis of samples for panels of pathogens and antibiotic-resistance profiles at clinically relevant levels in less than 2 min.

    • Brian Lam
    • , Jagotamoy Das
    •  & Shana O. Kelley

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Effective collection of molecules on a small sensing area is not possible based on diffusion alone and the employment of a directed force is required. The authors report a localized electrodynamic precipitation concept to collect, spot and detect airborne species in an active-matrix array-like fashion.

    • En-Chiang Lin
    • , Jun Fang
    •  & Heiko O. Jacobs

  • Article |

    Helium has not, to date, been observed crystallographically. Here, the authors report the first crystallographic observation of a helium atom, encapsulated in a fullerene, and show that it exerts a small but detectable influence on the electronic structure of a coencapsulated nitrogen atom.

    • Yuta Morinaka
    • , Satoru Sato
    •  & Yasujiro Murata

  • Article |

    Intense lasers enable scientists to study the behaviour of matter under extreme pressures, but obtaining information about its atomic structure is challenging. In this work, Suggit et al. demonstrate the use of white-light X-ray diffraction to probe the structure of laser-shocked copper on nanosecond timescales.

    • Matthew J. Suggit
    • , Andrew Higginbotham
    •  & Justin S. Wark

  • Article |

    Liquid crystal elastomers can perform mechanical motion triggered by external stimuli, and are light weight, flexible materials that may be integrated into micromechanical systems. Here they are used to fabricate a one-piece temperature-responsive micropump viaa microfluidic double-emulsion process.

    • Eva-Kristina Fleischmann
    • , Hsin-Ling Liang
    •  & Rudolf Zentel

  • Review Article |

    Quantum-mechanical tunnelling currents across nanometre-scale gaps between electrodes are sensitive to the medium in the gap. Albrecht reviews progress towards using tunnelling currents to probe single-molecule processes, and in biosensor and sequencing applications.

    • T. Albrecht

  • Article |

    A record of the daily light cycle in tropical regions is difficult to extract from biogenic marine carbonates such as shells. Here, the precise analysis of Sr/Ca ratios is shown in a cultivated giant clam shell, revealing variations that reflect the daily light cycle and the potential for future development of a proxy.

    • Yuji Sano
    • , Sayumi Kobayashi
    •  & Kenji Iwai

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Intracellular temperature mapping has not previously been achieved. Now, a fluorescent polymeric thermometer has been developed that can be used in combination with fluorescence-lifetime imaging microscopy to allow thermometry with spatial and temperature resolutions of 200 nm and 0.18–0.58 ° C.

    • Kohki Okabe
    • , Noriko Inada
    •  & Seiichi Uchiyama

  • Article |

    Leaves and tissues contain three-dimensional networks of fluidic channels, but similar artificial self-assembling systems have not yet been produced. Jamalet al. develop methods to produce three-dimensional microfluidic networks with curved geometries from the self-assembly of photopatterned polymers.

    • Mustapha Jamal
    • , Aasiyeh M. Zarafshar
    •  & David H. Gracias

  • Article |

    Surface characterization of soft materialsin situis challenging due to the importance of non-covalent interactions. Now, a new chemical imaging method is reported that generates images of surface interactions by combining many molecular probe trajectories.

    • Robert Walder
    • , Nathaniel Nelson
    •  & Daniel K. Schwartz

  • Article |

    Molecular probes that can detect aqueous sulphides could help to elucidate their roles in biological signalling. Qianet al. develop two sulphide-selective fluorescent probes and demonstrate their ability to image free sulphide in living cells.

    • Yong Qian
    • , Jason Karpus
    •  & Chuan He

  • Article |

    Quadrupoles have many engineering applications, but experimental observations of fluidic multipoles have not been reported. This study presents an experimental two-dimensional microfluidic quadrupole, a theoretical analysis consistent with observations, and a first application as a channel-free floating gradient generator.

    • Mohammad A. Qasaimeh
    • , Thomas Gervais
    •  & David Juncker

  • Article
    | Open Access

    High-power mechanical energy harvesting could be an alternative to batteries, but efficient energy conversion technology has been missing. Here, a novel mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion method is described that is based on reverse electrowetting and is uniquely suited for high-power energy harvesting.

    • Tom Krupenkin
    •  & J. Ashley Taylor

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nanoparticles continue to find research and industrial applications, but no single technique exists to characterise their physical properties. Now, an analytical ultracentrifugation method is described which allows the simulataneous determination of nanoparticle size, density and molecular weight distribution.

    • Randy P. Carney
    • , Jin Young Kim
    •  & Osman M. Bakr

  • Article |

    Protecting-group-free synthesis has received significant attention, but organolithium species react rapidly with ketones necessitating protection of the ketone carbonyl. Here, a flow-microreactor approach is described that allows protecting-group-free organolithium reactions in the presence of ketones.

    • Heejin Kim
    • , Aiichiro Nagaki
    •  & Jun-ichi Yoshida

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Distinguishing closely related molecules using chemosensor materials is a continuing challenge. Here, an entangled porous coordination polymer is developed, which confines volatile organic compounds, and allows photoluminescence-based distinction of structurally similar aromatic molecules.

    • Yohei Takashima
    • , Virginia Martínez Martínez
    •  & Susumu Kitagawa

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