Prediction of the calibration curves for the analysis of high absorbances using mode-mismatched dual-beam thermal lens spectrometry with chopped continuous wave laser excitation

Photothermal cancer therapy via femtosecond-laser-excited FePt nanoparticles

FePt nanoparticles (NPs) have recently been revealed to be significant multifunctional materials for the applications of biomedical imaging, drug delivery and magnetic hyperthermia due to their novel magnetic properties. In this study, a newly discovered photothermal effect activated by the near infrared (NIR) femtosecond laser for FePt NPs was demonstrated. The threshold laser energy to destroy cancer cells was found to be comparable to that of gold nanorods (Au NRs) previously reported. Through the thermal lens technique, it was concluded that the temperature of the FePt NPs can be heated up to a couple of hundreds degree C in picoseconds under laser irradiation due to the excellent photothermal transduction efficiency of FePt NPs. This finding boosts FePt NPs versatility in multifunctional targeted cancer therapy.

Advantages and limitations of thermal lens spectrometry over conventional spectrophotometry for absorbance measurements

This review considers the advantages and the limitations that thermal lens spectrometry has over conventional spectrophotometry for the measurement of optical absorption in specific applications. The photothermal method is characterized by its intrinsic sensitivity resulting from the indirect nature of the measurement and amplified by physical and thermo-optical parameters which are not effective in absorbance measurements. Other advantages include a weak dependence on light scattering and the complementary nature of photothermal spectra with respect to absorption and emission spectra for speciation studies at very low concentrations. The main drawbacks are the convective noise, the background absorbance and the complexity of the experimental set-up, especially when differential or wavelength scanning measurements are required.

Matrix effects in thermal lens spectrometry: influence of salts, surfactants, polymers and solvent mixtures

In this paper, we present an overall view of the matrix effects that can change or alter the signal in thermal lens spectrometry and we report the main works published in this field. The addition of salts, surfactants and polymers in aqueous solutions or the use of solvent mixtures is often needed in a variety of applications either to enhance the sensitivity of the thermal lens method or more generally because such media are required in the separation process prior to thermal lens detection. In most cases, matrix effects result in small changes in the thermo-optical properties of the solution and small signal variations. However, most important signal alterations can arise from the Soret effect. In binary mixtures as well as in solutions with macromolecular species which are initially homogeneous, the temperature gradient will induce the migration of molecules and the formation of a concentration gradient. This results in the formation of a concentration-dependent refractive index gradient which adds to the temperature-dependent refractive index gradient and contributes to the formation of a new signal. This effect can seriously alter the analytical signal and lead to erroneous interpretation of the experimental data. In contrast, time-resolved measurements can help in separating both signal components and have allowed to derive mass-diffusion times and mass-diffusion coefficients for a variety of micelles and polymers.

Sensitivity improvement in capillary electrophoresis using organo-aqueous separation buffers and thermal lens detection

It is shown that organo-aqueous separation buffers show much promise when used in capillary electrophoresis separations with photothermal (thermal lens) detection systems. Acetonitrile-water and methanol-water mixtures were selected, as conventionally used in capillary electrophoresis. It is shown that, despite more sophisticated experimental conditions (significant heat outflow from the capillary body) and peak detection, the theoretical ratio of the thermal lens signal for a binary mixture to the thermal lens signal for an aqueous solution (or the corresponding ratio obtained experimentally under bulk batch conditions) can be used to predict the sensitivity of thermal lens detection in capillary electrophoresis. The limits of detection for 2-, 3-, and 4-nitrophenols selected as model compounds in 70% v/v acetonitrile separation buffers are 1 x 10(-6) M, 1 x 10(-6) M and 3 x 10(-7) M, respectively, and are therefore decreased by a factor of six compared to thermal lens detection in aqueous separation buffers. The overall increase in the thermal lens detection sensitivity in a 100% ACN buffer is a factor of 13.

Signal optimisation in cw-laser crossed-beam photothermal spectrometry: influence of the chopping frequency, sample size and flow rate

Optimisation of the optical design for cw-laser crossed-beam thermal lens spectrometry in infinite and finite samples has been investigated using different excitation beam waists and various lens combinations. The characteristics of the photothermal signal depending on the position of the sample with respect to the probe beam waist, the chopping frequency, the sample size and the flow rate have been considered. Depending on the irradiation duration, the size of the thermal element at the measurement time can be much greater than the waist of the excitation beam. As a result, the optimum sample position is closely related to the probe beam to thermal element size ratio and therefore depends on the chopping frequency and of the sample size. At low frequencies, the size of the thermal element is almost independent of the degree of focusing of the excitation beam because a smaller beam waist induces a faster thermal expansion. As a result, the amplitude of the optimum signal does not depend on the waist of the excitation beam. In contrast, at high frequency, the size of the thermal element remains closer to the size of the excitation beam and the signal is inversely proportional to the waist of the excitation beam as previously demonstrated under pulsed-laser excitation. Moreover, at moderate flow velocities, the signal is significantly enhanced because the negative effect produced by the displacement of the thermal element across the probe beam axis is more than compensated by a decrease of the effective thermal time constant due to radial mixing.

Photothermal spectrometry for detection in miniaturized systems: relevant features, strategies and recent applications

There is a growing interest in using miniaturized analytical devices because they allow to execute the different steps of an analytical process within very short times and with drastic reduction in the amounts of solvents, reagents and samples. As for capillary electrophoresis, these systems require detectors which are sensitive, versatile and adaptable to very small detection volumes. In this respect, photothermal spectrometry which is complementary to fluorescence seems to be a promising detection method. This review describes the basic principle of photothermal spectrometry along with the related methods based on colinear-beam or crossed-beam configuration of the pump and probe lasers. Two experimental set ups especially designed for microfluidic systems as well as for capillary electrophoresis are described. Their characteristics and key features are discussed and the main applications are outlined.

Cw-laser thermal lens spectrometry in binary mixtures of water and organic solvents: composition dependence of the steady-state and time-resolved signals

The thermal lens effect obtained in binary liquid systems composed of water and ethanol, propanol and acetonitrile has been investigated. The dependence of dn/dT upon the solvent volume fraction follows polynomials up to sixth order and cannot be precisely predicted using the additive rule. The sensitivity of the thermal lens method upon the addition of organic solvent in water varies as the temperature-dependent refractive index gradient to thermal conductivity ratio of the mixture provided that the signal is sampled correctly. Otherwise, especially when steady-state experiments are carried out, the thermally induced concentration gradient, known as the Soret effect, can change the thermo-optical properties of the solution locally in the irradiated area and produce an additional signal. This effect depends on the solvent and is maximum at low solvent composition. At the critical solvent volume fraction of 0.1-0.15, the Soret component may represent up to 25% of the pure thermal lens signal and has a time constant which is 200-400 times greater than the characteristic time constant of the thermal lens.

Investigation of the optimum optical design for pulsed-laser crossed-beam thermal lens spectrometry in infinite and finite samples

Optimization of the optical design for pulsed-laser crossed-beam thermal lens (PLCBTL) spectrometry has been investigated. Experiments have been carried out with large samples as well as for very small samples in a microchannel and using different lens combinations to focus the probe and excitation beams. The results have been interpreted in terms of the influence of the excitation beam size as well as the degree of mode-mismatching of the excitation and probe beams on the optimum sample position and on the amplitude and decay of the photothermal signal. A semi-empirical formula that describes the influence of the sample position with respect to the probe beam waist has been established. We have shown that the optimum signal is inversely proportional to the waist of the excitation beam and is independent of the sample size as long as the size of the excitation beam is smaller than the microchannel. Time-resolved experiments have also shown that when the excitation beam is smaller than the sample, the signal decay depends not only on the size of the excitation beam but also on the mode-mismatching factor. Otherwise, the temporal characteristics are closely related to the size of the microchannel.

Investigation of the diffusion coefficient of polymers and micelles in aqueous solutions using the Soret effect in cw-laser thermal lens spectrometry

The concentration gradient (Soret effect) induced in cw-laser thermal lens spectrometry subsequently to the formation of the thermal gradient (thermal lens effect) has been investigated in aqueous solutions of various macromolecular species including micelles, mixed micelles and polymers. It is shown that the build-up of the concentration gradient is much shorter than that in classical Soret experiments, reaching steady-state values in less than 1 min. The time evolution of the Soret signal has been used to derive mass-diffusion times from which mass-diffusion coefficients were calculated. Our data are in agreement with previous results obtained from quasi-elastic light scattering studies for the micellar solutions and calculated from a known molecular weight-dependent power law for polymer solutions.

Investigation of the thermal lens effect in water-ethanol mixtures: composition dependence of the refractive index gradient, the enhancement factor and the Soret effect

The thermal lens effect produced in binary mixtures of water and ethanol has been investigated. It is shown that the sensitivity of the thermal lens method upon the addition of ethanol in water varies as the temperature-dependent refractive index gradient to thermal conductivity ratio of the mixture. The dependence of k and dn/dT upon the ethanol volume fraction follows a second-order and fourth-order polynomial, respectively, and cannot be precisely predicted using the additive rule. Moreover, depending on the experimental conditions and the mixture composition, the temperature gradient produced subsequently to relaxation of the excited species induces mutual migration of the solvent molecules and the formation of a concentration gradient in the irradiated area. This effect, known as the Soret effect, can locally change the thermo-optical properties of the solution and produce an additional signal, especially when steady-state experiments are done. This may result in errors as large as 20% when quantitative informations have to be derived from experimental data.

Thermal lens spectrometry in aqueous solutions of Brij 35: investigation of micelle effects on the time-resolved and steady-state signals

This work investigates the effect of micelles on the time-resolved and steady-state thermal lens signals in aqueous solutions. The temperature gradient produced subsequently to non-radiative relaxation of the sample induces migration of micelles towards the colder region of the irradiated area along with an opposite flow of solute molecules. This phenomenon, known as the Soret effect, produces an additional probe beam signal with a rise time that is much longer than the thermal time constant and depends on the surfactant and solute concentrations. Extrapolation of the mass-diffusion constant at zero solute concentration allowed the determination of diffusion coefficients that are close to those derived by other methods for Brij 35 micelles in water. It is also shown that the surfactant has only a small effect on the thermal lens signal and that the enhancement produced by micelles with respect to pure water originates mainly firom the Soret effect. It follows that interpretation of experimental data without discriminating both components of the probe beam signal can lead to erroneous values of dn/dT.