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Fardelli E, D'Arco A, Lupi S, Billi D, Moeller R, Guidi MC. Spectroscopic evidence of the radioresistance of Chroococcidiopsis biosignatures: A combined Raman, FT-IR and THz-TDs spectroscopy study. SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA. PART A, MOLECULAR AND BIOMOLECULAR SPECTROSCOPY 2023; 288:122148. [PMID: 36462318 DOI: 10.1016/j.saa.2022.122148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
In the last decades, Mars has been widely studied with on-site missions and observations, showing a planet that could have hosted life in the past. For this reason, the recent and future space missions on the red planet will search for traces of past and, possibly, present life. As a basis for these missions, Space Agencies, such as the European Space Agency, have conducted many experiments on living organisms, studying their behavior in extraterrestrial conditions, learning to recognize their biosignatures with techniques remotely controllable such as Raman spectroscopy. Among these organisms, the radioresistant cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis was irradiated during the STARLIFE campaign with strong radiative insults. In this article we have investigated this cyanobacterium using Raman spectroscopy and extended the characterization of its biosignatures and its response to the radiative stress to the mid- Infrared and Terahertz spectral region using the Fourier Transform InfraRed (FT-IR) and Terahertz Time Domain spectroscopy (THz- TDs), which demonstrates the compatibility and suitability of these techniques for future space missions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Fardelli
- University of Roma Tre, Department of Science, Viale G. Marconi, 446, Rome, 00146, Italy.
| | - Annalisa D'Arco
- University of La Sapienza, Department of Physics, P.le A. Moro, 5, Rome, 00185, Italy
| | - Stefano Lupi
- University of La Sapienza, Department of Physics, P.le A. Moro, 5, Rome, 00185, Italy; INFN - LNF, Via E. Fermi, 54, Frascati, 00044, Italy
| | - Daniela Billi
- University of Tor Vergata, Department of Biology, Via della ricerca scientifica, 1, Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Ralf Moeller
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, section Aerospace Microbiology, Linder Hohe, Cologne, 51147, Germany
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Xiang K, Xie C, Feng Q, Wang Z, Dai G, Wang J, Zhang J, Meng W, Hou Y, Lu Q, Lu Y. A Cryostat Applicable to Long-Wavelength Light-Driven Scanning Probe Microscopy. MICROMACHINES 2023; 14:378. [PMID: 36838078 PMCID: PMC9964935 DOI: 10.3390/mi14020378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2022] [Revised: 01/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Recently, there has been growing interest in using lightwave-driven scanning probe microscopy (LD-SPM) to break through the Abbe diffraction limit of focusing, yielding insight into various energy couplings and conversion processes and revealing the internal information of matter. We describe a compact and efficient optical cryostat designed for LD-SPM testing under magnetic fields. The exceptional multilayer radiation shielding insert (MRSI) forms an excellent temperature gradient when filled with heat conducting gas, which removes the requirement to install an optical window in the liquid helium cooling shell. This not only critically avoids the vibration and thermal drift caused by solid heat conduction but also minimizes light transmission loss. The application of gate valves and bellows allows a simpler and more effective replacement of the sample and working cell in the test cavity. ANSYS software is used for steady-state thermal analysis of the MRSI to obtain the temperature distribution and heat transfer rate, and the necessity of the flexible copper shielding strips is illustrated by the simulations. The topography and magnetic domain images of 45 nm-thick La0.67Ca0.33MnO3 thin films on NdGaO3(001) substrates under a magnetic field were obtained by a self-made lightwave-driven magnetic force microscope in this cryostat. The resolution and noise spectra during imaging reveal temperature stability and low vibration throughout the cryostat. The experience acquired during the development of this cryostat will help to establish cryostats of similar types for a variety of optic applications requiring the use of cryogenic temperatures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kui Xiang
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Caihong Xie
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Qiyuan Feng
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Ze Wang
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Guangbin Dai
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Laboratory of Advanced Photon Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Jihao Wang
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Jing Zhang
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Wenjie Meng
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Yubin Hou
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Qingyou Lu
- High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Condensed Matter Physics at Extreme Conditions, High Magnetic Field Laboratory and High Magnetic Field Laboratory of Anhui, Hefei 230031, China
- Anhui Laboratory of Advanced Photon Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230031, China
| | - Yalin Lu
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
- Anhui Laboratory of Advanced Photon Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
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Abstract
Proteins play a key role in living organisms. The study of proteins and their dynamics provides information about their functionality, catalysis and potential alterations towards pathological diseases. Several techniques are used for studying protein dynamics, e.g., magnetic resonance, fluorescence imaging techniques, mid-infrared spectroscopy and biochemical assays. Spectroscopic analysis, based on the use of terahertz (THz) radiation with frequencies between 0.1 and 15 THz (3–500 cm−1), was underestimated by the biochemical community. In recent years, however, the potential of THz spectroscopy in the analysis of both simple structures, such as polypeptide molecules, and complex structures, such as protein complexes, has been demonstrated. The THz absorption spectrum provides some information on proteins: for small molecules the THz spectrum is dominated by individual modes related to the presence of hydrogen bonds. For peptides, the spectral information concerns their secondary structure, while for complex proteins such as globular proteins and viral glycoproteins, spectra also provide information on collective modes. In this short review, we discuss the results obtained by THz spectroscopy in the protein dynamics investigations. In particular, we will illustrate advantages and applications of THz spectroscopy, pointing out the complementary information it may provide.
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Performance Evaluation of a THz Pulsed Imaging System: Point Spread Function, Broadband THz Beam Visualization and Image Reconstruction. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/app11020562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Terahertz (THz) technology is a promising research field for various applications in basic science and technology. In particular, THz imaging is a new field in imaging science, where theories, mathematical models and techniques for describing and assessing THz images have not completely matured yet. In this work, we investigate the performances of a broadband pulsed THz imaging system (0.2–2.5 THz). We characterize our broadband THz beam, emitted from a photoconductive antenna (PCA), and estimate its point spread function (PSF) and the corresponding spatial resolution. We provide the first, to our knowledge, 3D beam profile of THz radiation emitted from a PCA, along its propagation axis, without the using of THz cameras or profilers, showing the beam spatial intensity distribution. Finally, we evaluate the THz image formation on a test-sample composed by a regular linen natural pattern.
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