1
|
Ortiz Peña N, Ihiawakrim D, Creţu S, Cotin G, Kiefer C, Begin-Colin S, Sanchez C, Portehault D, Ersen O. In situ liquid transmission electron microscopy reveals self-assembly-driven nucleation in radiolytic synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles in organic media. NANOSCALE 2022; 14:10950-10957. [PMID: 35860928 DOI: 10.1039/d2nr01511k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
We have investigated the early stages of the formation of iron oxide nanoparticles from iron stearate precursors in the presence of sodium stearate in an organic solvent by in situ liquid phase transmission electron microscopy (IL-TEM). Before nucleation, we have evidenced the spontaneous formation of vesicular assemblies made of iron polycation-based precursors sandwiched between stearate layers. Nucleation of iron oxide nanoparticles occurs within the walls of the vesicles, which subsequently collapse upon the consumption of the iron precursors and the growth of the nanoparticles. We then evidenced that fine control of the electron dose, and therefore of the local concentration of reactive iron species in the vicinity of the nuclei, enables controlling crystal growth and selecting the morphology of the resulting iron oxide nanoparticles. Such a direct observation of the nucleation process templated by vesicular assemblies in a hydrophobic organic solvent sheds new light on the formation process of metal oxide nanoparticles and therefore opens ways for the synthesis of inorganic colloidal systems with tunable shape and size.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nathaly Ortiz Peña
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
- Université Paris Cité, CNRS, Laboratoire Matériaux et Phénomènes Quantiques, 75013 Paris, France
| | - Dris Ihiawakrim
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| | - Sorina Creţu
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| | - Geoffrey Cotin
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| | - Céline Kiefer
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| | - Sylvie Begin-Colin
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| | - Clément Sanchez
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Collège de France, Laboratoire de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Paris (CMCP), 4 place Jussieu, F-75005, Paris, France
- University of Strasbourg Institute for Advanced Studies (USIAS), 67083 Strasbourg, France
| | - David Portehault
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, Collège de France, Laboratoire de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Paris (CMCP), 4 place Jussieu, F-75005, Paris, France
| | - Ovidiu Ersen
- Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg (IPCMS), UMR 7504 CNRS Université de Strasbourg, BP 43 Strasbourg Cedex 2, France.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Pu S, Gong C, Robertson AW. Liquid cell transmission electron microscopy and its applications. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2020; 7:191204. [PMID: 32218950 PMCID: PMC7029903 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.191204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2019] [Accepted: 11/19/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) has long been an essential tool for understanding the structure of materials. Over the past couple of decades, this venerable technique has undergone a number of revolutions, such as the development of aberration correction for atomic level imaging, the realization of cryogenic TEM for imaging biological specimens, and new instrumentation permitting the observation of dynamic systems in situ. Research in the latter has rapidly accelerated in recent years, based on a silicon-chip architecture that permits a versatile array of experiments to be performed under the high vacuum of the TEM. Of particular interest is using these silicon chips to enclose fluids safely inside the TEM, allowing us to observe liquid dynamics at the nanoscale. In situ imaging of liquid phase reactions under TEM can greatly enhance our understanding of fundamental processes in fields from electrochemistry to cell biology. Here, we review how in situ TEM experiments of liquids can be performed, with a particular focus on microchip-encapsulated liquid cell TEM. We will cover the basics of the technique, and its strengths and weaknesses with respect to related in situ TEM methods for characterizing liquid systems. We will show how this technique has provided unique insights into nanomaterial synthesis and manipulation, battery science and biological cells. A discussion on the main challenges of the technique, and potential means to mitigate and overcome them, will also be presented.
Collapse
|
3
|
Kashin AS, Ananikov VP. Monitoring chemical reactions in liquid media using electron microscopy. Nat Rev Chem 2019. [DOI: 10.1038/s41570-019-0133-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
|