Chapter 2 - Generic Methodologies for Characterization

Abstract

One of the major aspects in nanoparticle science is studying its characteristics as it will teach us how these nanoparticles behave. However, since there are several types of nanoparticles, each nanoparticle class has different methodologies that are followed (e.g., scanning probe techniques and spectroscopy techniques). Scanning probe techniques are those that measure the surface morphology in real space with a resolution at the atomic level (e.g., AFM and MFM). Scanning probe microscopy originated from scanning tunneling microscopy. Electron microscopy that examines nanostructure characterization includes transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (e.g., analyzing the composition at the nanoscale) as well as X-ray diffraction are the most popular spectroscopy techniques. For surface analysis and depth profiling the common techniques are auger electron spectroscopy (e.g., analyzing surface composition) and secondary ion mass spectroscopy (e.g., demonstrating three-dimensional profiling). Generally, these methods all contribute to the production, innovation, and application of nanomaterials.