EDITOR: GEORGE H. MORRISON ASSOClATE EDITORS: Klaus Blemann, Georges Gulochon, Theodore Kuwana, Fred Lytle EDITORIAL HEADQUARTERS 1155 Sixteenth St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 Phone: 202-872-4570 Teletype: 710-8220 151 Executive Editor; Josephine M. Petruzzi Associate Editors: Stuart A. Borman, Rani A. George, Marcia S.Vogel, Louise Voress Assistant Editor; Mary D. Warner ProductIon Manager: Leroy L. Corcoran Art Director: Alan Kahan Designer: Sharon Harris Wolfgang Production Editor: Gail M. Mortenson Circulation: Cynthia G. Smith Editorial Assistant, LabGuide: Joanne Mullican Journals Dept., Columbus, Ohlo Associate Head: Marianne Brogan Associate Editor: Rodney L. Temos AdvJsory Board: Shier S. Berman, Brian S. Bidlingmeyer, Henry N. Blount, Gary D. Christian, Harry V. Drushei, Larry R. Faulkner, William R. Heineman, Harry S. Hertz, Gary M. Hieftje, Atsushi Mizuike, Ern0 Pungor, Melvin W. Redmond, Jr., Martin A. Rudat, Dennis Schuetzle, Charles L. Wilkins, Nicholas Winograd Instrumentation Advlsory Panel: Howard G. Earth, Richard F. Browner, Richard S.Danchik, Thomas C. Farrar, Joel M. Harris, John F. Holland, F. James Holler, Peter N. Keliher, D.Warren Vidrine. Contributing Editor, A/C Interface: Raymond E. Dessy The Analytical Approach Advlsory Panel: Edward C. Duniop, Robert A. Hofstader, Wilbur D. Shults Published by the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY 1155 16th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 Books and Journals Divlsion Director; D. H. Michael Bowen Journals: Charles R. Bertsch Production: Elmer Pusey, Jr. Research and Development: Lorrin R. Garson Manuscript requirements are published in the January 1986 issue, page 267. Manuscripts for publication (4 copies) should be submitted to ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY at the ACS Washington address. The American Chemical Society and its editors assume no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by contributors. Views expressed in the editorials are those of the editors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the American Chemical Society.
'chemistry Microscopes, Nanoscopes, and Picoscopes? One of the oldest and most useful instruments for research in the sciences is the microscope. Every advance in the ability to see objects on smaller and smaller scales has led to fundamental increases in the understanding of biological and physical processes. Whereas the original microscopes made use of light, present-day instruments use a variety of radiations, including beams of sound waves, electrons, X-rays, and ions. In addition t o the enhanced capabilities of these high-energy particles to push the limits of resolution to even smaller dimensions, the use of computers and image analysis is currently revolutionizing the quantitative use of microscopes. A recent article by Walter Sullivan in the New Yorh Times (Dec. 10, 1985) reported on a number of exciting new developments of which analytical chemists must be made aware. Electron microscopy needs no introduction to today's scientists; however, the advent of the scanning transmission electron microscope, or STEM, has led t o the ability to produce images of individual atoms. A new version being developed by Dr. Albert V. Crewe a t the University of Chicago is designed to reveal chemical properties as well as achieve a spatial resolution of 0.6 A. Other new approaches include the use of X-rays of relatively long wavelength to show very tiny structures without destroying them. X-ray images of a living cell have been obtained with a resolution of 75 A, almost enough to show individual molecules. The scanning tunneling microscope being developed by IBM to study the surfaces of solids can achieve a resolution of -2 A and should enable researchers to study corrosion and other metal surface reactions on the smallest scale. The acoustic microscope, under development a t Stanford University and elsewhere, offers special advantages in that its images reflect the mechanical qualities of the specimen such as density, elasticity, and viscosity. In the field of elemental mapping, the scanning ion microscope, developed independently by Dr. R. Levi-Setti at the University of Chicago in conjunction with Hughes Research Laboratories and by Dr. A. R. Bayly and associates a t V. G. Scientific in Sussex, can provide elemental and isotopic information with a resolution of -400 A. While these new microscopes using a variety of radiations are greatly advancing our knowledge of physical and biological phenomena, the use of visible light is still producing exciting new developments. Dr. Alan Boyde a t University College in London has produced threedimensional pictures of highly magnified subjects for the first time. A t Cornel1 University, Dr. Aaron Lewis and his colleagues have devised a method to produce images showing details far smaller than the wavelength of light used to scan the specimen. The technique, nearfield scanning optical microscopy, produces an extremely narrow beam of light by passing it through an aperture whose diameter is only l/lo to l/& the light's wavelength. In short, we owe much to the physics community for providing these exciting new developments, and analytical chemists should seize this opportunity to make use of them as practical analytical tools for the microcharacterization of materials.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY, VOL. 58, NO. 3, MARCH 1986
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