Novel Probe for Thermally Controlled Raman Spectroscopy Using Online IR Sensing and Emissivity Measurements.

Temperature rise during Raman spectroscopy can induce chemical alterations of the material under analysis and seriously affect its characterization. Thus, such photothermal side effects can represent a serious problem to be carefully controlled in order to safeguard the integrity of the material and its spectral features. In this work, an innovative probe for thermally controlled portable Raman spectroscopy (exc.

Quantitative Compositional Analyses of Calcareous Rocks for Lime Industry Using LIBS.

Here, the potential of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) in grading calcareous rocks for the lime industry was investigated. In particular, we developed a system equipped with non-intensified detectors operating in scanning mode, defined a suitable data acquisition protocol, and implemented quantitative data processing using both partial least squares regression (PLS-R) and a multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural network. Tests were carried out on 32 samples collected in various limestone quarries, which were preliminarily analyzed using traditional laboratory X-ray fluorescence (XRF); then, they were divided into two groups for calibration and validation.

Nanoscopic insights into the surface conformation of neurotoxic amyloid β oligomers.

Raman spectroscopy assisted by localized plasmon resonances generating effective hot spots at the gaps between intertwined silver nanowires is herein adopted to unravel characteristic molecular motifs on the surface of Aβ misfolded oligomers that are critical in driving intermolecular interactions in neurodegeneration.

Red lakes from Leonardo's Last Supper and other Old Master Paintings: Micro-Raman spectroscopy of anthraquinone pigments in paint cross-sections.

The analysis of red particles in paint cross-sections from Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper, Masolino da Panicale's wall painting Beheading of St. John the Baptist in Castiglione Olona, Tintoretto's The Discovery of the Body of Saint Mark and Paolo Veronese's Supper in the House of Simon has been carried out with micro-Raman measurements. Subtracted shifted Raman spectroscopy methods have been employed to resolve the signals in the presence of fluorescence.

Raman spectrometer for the automated scan of large painted surfaces.

In this work, a novel Raman scanner capable of performing point-to-point mapping of relatively large surface of paintings is presented. This device employs an excitation wavelength of 1064 nm, and it is equipped with a high efficiency probe in order to collect the back-scattered light from each point of analysis. The use of long depth-of-field optics as well as an autofocus system allowed maintaining the best conditions for the Raman signal acquisition during the scanning, regardless of the surface irregularities.

A remote scanning Raman spectrometer for in situ measurements of works of art.

In conservation science, one of the main concerns is to extract information from an artistic surface without damaging it. Raman spectroscopy has emerged in recent years as a reliable tool for the non-destructive analysis of a wide range of inorganic and organic materials in works of art and archaeological objects. Nevertheless, the technique is still mainly limited to the analysis of micro-samples taken from artistic surfaces.

Assessment of the ageing of triterpenoid paint varnishes using fluorescence, Raman and FTIR spectroscopy.

The assessment of the influence of natural and artificial ageing on the spectrofluorescence of triterpenoid varnishes dammar and mastic is the focus of this work. Both Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy using attenuated total reflectance and Raman spectroscopy have been employed for complementary molecular analysis of samples. Synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy, excitation emission spectroscopy, and statistical analysis of data have been used to monitor changes in the optical properties of varnish samples.

An optimization of parameters for application of a laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy microprobe for the analysis of works of art.

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) provides many advantages for analysis of works of art. Both qualitative and semi-quantitative information about the elemental composition of an object can be rapidly obtained using LIBS. The time of response is on the order of a few seconds and no sample preparation is required.

Shift-excitation Raman difference spectroscopy-difference deconvolution method for the luminescence background rejection from Raman spectra of solid samples.

The feasibility of the shift-excitation Raman difference spectroscopy-difference deconvolution (SERDS-DDM) method for fluorescence suppression from Raman spectra of solid samples is discussed. For SERDS measurements a tunable diode laser source with an emission band centered at 684 nm is coupled to a conventional micro-Raman apparatus and a monochromator device is used for checking the excitation frequency stability. The shifted Raman spectra are then mathematically treated and a deconvolution procedure is used to reconstruct the Raman spectrum devoid of fluorescence.

Raman spectra of proteinaceous materials used in paintings: a multivariate analytical approach for classification and identification.

This work presents Raman spectra obtained from thin films of protein materials which are commonly used as binding media in painted works of art. Spectra were recorded over the spectral range of 3250-250 cm(-1), using an excitation wavelength of 785 nm, and several bands have been identified in the fingerprint region that correspond to the various proteins examined. Differences in the C-H vibrations located between 3200 and 2700 cm(-1) can be accounted for with reference to the amino acid composition of the protein-based binding media as well as the presence of fatty acid esters, in the case of egg yolk.