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Nanomaterials are becoming more and more widely used in our everyday lives. With the gradual refining of regulations in Europe and America, how to analyze nano-additives in liquid environments with accurate and undistorted results has become a major issue. |
Recently, countries in Europe and America have successively formulated new regulations regarding the labeling and review of liquid nanomaterials, emphasizing the need for a complete physical and chemical analysis of the final product state, especially in its original liquid environment. For nano-additive ingredients, this includes the analysis of their particle size, size distribution, shape, and concentration as well as their aggregates and agglomerates and other important characteristics.
Considering the analysis needs for nano-industry, if the electron microscope could be used to observe nanomaterials directly at the microscopic level, the most authentic image information of product ingredient characteristics could be obtained.
In recent years, with the rapid development of precision manufacturing technology, a handful of manufacturers around the world have begun providing solutions for liquid sample analysis. However, most existing techniques need to employ dedicated in-situ holders specifically that designed for their own use. So, not only is sample pre-processing complicated but the required hardware is also extremely expensive. Most are focused on academic research and cannot meet the industry’s need for fast, low-cost analysis of large numbers of samples.
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MA-tek’s exclusively patented technology, K-Kit, makes high quality electron microscope image of liquid samples possible. Whether the final state of the product is a liquid sample or a typical dry sample, both can be observed and analyzed directly, making it the best solution for industrial applications. It is the answer to a whole range of liquid nanomaterial analysis needs！ |
In order to observe liquid samples in an electron microscope, sample solutions must be isolated from the vacuum environment of the equipment chamber. The simplest method is to use a Wet Cell to carry the solution. The K-kit chip is designed as a Unibody structure. The liquid storage channel inside can quickly load the sample solution via capillary effect. It is convenient and simple to operate.
The figure below is a comparison of the results of image analysis using the K-kit (Wet State) and the traditional TEM copper grid (dry state). Clearly, if the copper grid is used for observation, there will be a severe aggregation of nanoparticles due to desiccation. It is impossible to perform any qualitative or quantitative analysis on the aggregated particles.
Using a copper grid to observe the TEM image of an undiluted Chemical-Mechanical Polishing (CMP) slurry results in severely aggregated particles. This makes it impossible to analyze the true size and dispersion of nanoparticles. |
Using the K-kit to observe the TEM image of an undiluted CMP slurry allows for clear observation of the actual appearance, size, suspension and dispersion of the nanoparticles in their original liquid environment. |
The K-kit employs an exclusive Unibody Structure. It is designed for one-time use, so there are no cross-contamination issues. There is also no need to clean the chip before use nor any need for preparatory steps such as cleaning, assembly and leak detection. Liquid samples are loaded via capillary force, which makes the K-kit stable and reliable even when handling high viscosity solutions. Even oily samples can be loaded directly with no need for dilution (can load solutions with viscosity coefficients greater than 3,000 mPa-s).
 Schematic diagram of the K-kit chip |
 K-kit solution loading method |
The K-kit chip is carried by a common TEM standard copper ring. So, it can be used with most electron microscope equipment, including the brands Hitachi, FEI, JEOL and others, for a direct observation.
 K-kit The K-kit is suitable applied in all kinds of TEM equipment for the observation. |
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The K-kit has unlimited potential when it comes to the industrial applications of liquid sample observation in electron microscopes. Whether it’s in the electronics industry, biomedicine and cosmetics or food and beverages, it can provide fast and effective analysis. |
The K-kit’s wide range of applications include quality control of nanomaterials in the electronics industry (such as analyzing particle sizes and dispersion in the CMP slurry), the new drug developments and pathologic studies in the field of biomedicine, analysis of nano-additives in foods and beverages, and the inspection of ingredients in everyday medical and cosmetic products (such as sunscreens and lotions containing nano-ingredients). With the K-kit, these tasks can all be completed quickly.
In addition, the K-kit has extensive potential in the field of smart health care. It can be used in the development of new drugs, biological and medical research, disease detection, blood screening and more. It has the power to provide the most accurate and intuitive liquid sample electron microscopy results for use in medical diagnosis and research.
The example in the figure below, the CMP slurry used in the semiconductor process has been loaded into the K-kit. See the TEM image observation and the particle size distribution.
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Analysis results of primary and secondary particles in size distribution and aggregation state in the CMP slurry. |
The figure below shows the K-kit observation with the sample solution of Multi-walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT). With K-kit, the dispersion of carbon nanotubes and multilayer structure can be clearly observed. (MWCNTs: OD 30-80 nm, Length < 10 μm, 10 wt%)
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Use the K-kit to observe the TEM image results of multi-walled carbon nanotubes in a solution. |
The K-kit can observe the true appearance and distribution of biological samples in solutions.
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Extracellular vesicles of platelets / Nucleoid of E.coli / Collagen bundles in liquid |
Generally speaking, when it comes to industrial applications, the K-kit has the following advantages：
- Fast, easy to use, and low-cost
- Compatible with all brands of TEM equipment
- Can use SEM for observation
- Can be applied to the analysis of a variety of common chemical solutions
- No cross-contamination (one-time use)
- Able to perform quantitative analysis of particle distributions
- Can be used on highly viscous liquids (load using capillary force)
- Can be available with negative staining and on multiple loadings
- Reliable for use within the a temperature range of 196°C to 120°C
- Can perform both EDX and lattice diffraction analysis in TEM
- Samples can be stored for a long time and observed repeatedly
The K-kit makes high quality of electron microscope image observation of liquid samples possible. Whether the final state of the product is a liquid sample or a typical dry sample, both can be directly observed and analyzed. Because of its convenience, speed and flexibility, it is the only tool on the market suitable for the complex test conditions in academic research as well as for industry-related nanomaterial analysis.
At present, K-kit products have been sold from more than a dozen distributors of electron microscope consumable parts worldwide. MA-tek is also providing comprehensive liquid sample analysis services based on this exclusively patented technology. It is believed that the K-kit will quickly become an indispensable liquid sample imaging solution for electron microscopes in both the global industry and academic research！
