A brand new low-damage imaging approach developed on the Japan Superior Institute of Science and Expertise (JAIST) is opening the door to detailed evaluation of fragile nanomaterials for the primary time.
Knowledge-driven lattice correlation evaluation. Workflow of lattice-correlation evaluation: (a) HRTEM picture exhibiting darkish distinction metatitanic acid nanoparticles. (b) Detected particles color-coded by picture processing. (c) Quick Fourier Rework (FFT) of the particle marked in (b). (d) Lattice correlation map with (004)/(110) and (002)/(110) spots. (e) Proposed crystal mannequin. (f) Simulated annular darkish subject scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) of the mannequin. (g) Annular darkish subject STEM of metatitanic acid nanoparticles. Picture Credit score: Yoshifumi Oshima from JAIST.
A brand new low-damage imaging approach developed on the Japan Superior Institute of Science and Expertise (JAIST) is opening the door to detailed evaluation of fragile nanomaterials for the primary time.
Nanomaterials have gotten important to trendy know-how—powering batteries, enhancing clear vitality programs, and enabling extra environment friendly catalysts. Their distinctive benefits typically stem from the exact association of atoms inside them. But, regardless of their vital position, the smallest constructing blocks of those supplies have typically remained elusive, largely as a result of conventional imaging methods depend on robust electron beams that may injury these delicate constructions.
To beat this problem, researchers at JAIST mixed high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) with data-driven lattice correlation evaluation, efficiently mapping the three-dimensional atomic construction of titanium oxyhydroxide nanoparticles—a category of supplies valued for his or her roles in vitality units and superior catalysts.
The research, led by Professor Yoshifumi Oshima together with Senior Lecturer Kohei Aso, Senior Technical Specialist Koichi Higashimine, Former Senior Lecturer Masanobu Miyata, and Dr. Hiroshi Kamio from Nippon Metal, was printed in Communications Chemistry on April twenty eighth, 2025.
One of many standout options of this new approach is how successfully it protects fragile nanomaterials throughout imaging. Conventional electron microscopy typically damages delicate samples, reminiscent of titanium oxyhydroxides, earlier than they are often correctly analyzed.
By lowering electron publicity by 20 to 500 occasions in comparison with typical strategies, the JAIST crew achieved high-resolution imaging with out the danger of beam-induced injury.
Controlling the crystal constructions of steel oxyhydroxides is the important thing for his or her purposes, however that is typically restricted by the difficulties of analyzing these beam-sensitive nanomaterials. However our methodology allows a safer method for structural evaluation, permitting researchers to grasp and management their properties successfully.
Kohei Aso, Senior Lecturer, Japan Superior Institute of Science and Expertise
Utilizing this system, the crew made an essential discovery about metatitanic acid (H2TiO3), a titanium-based materials extensively utilized in catalytic and vitality purposes.
Their evaluation revealed that metatitanic acid options an alternating layered construction composed of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and titanium hydroxide (Ti(OH)4)—a construction strikingly just like anatase, a naturally occurring type of titanium dioxide recognized for its distinctive optical and digital properties.
The placing structural resemblance between metatitanic acid and anatase vividly explains why metatitanic acid is a extensively favored precursor for the synthesis of the anatase section of TiO2.
Kohei Aso, Senior Lecturer, Japan Superior Institute of Science and Expertise
This discovery may pave the way in which for designing supplies with improved efficiency, whether or not it’s enhancing chemical reactions in catalysts or boosting effectivity in batteries and sensors.
Whereas the crew’s work focuses on titanium oxyhydroxide, the implications go a lot additional. Many superior nanomaterials utilized in at present’s cutting-edge applied sciences are simply as weak to electron beam injury. The tactic developed at JAIST may very well be a game-changer for analyzing and enhancing a variety of supplies essential for clear vitality, electronics, and sustainable applied sciences.
Past experimental developments, the analysis highlights the rising synergy between experimental and computational approaches in supplies science.
Wanting forward, the crew envisions their lattice correlation evaluation turning into a key software for data-driven supplies design, serving to to speed up the event of next-generation, high-performance units.
Journal Reference:
Aso, Okay., et al. (2025) Three-dimensional atomic-scale characterization of titanium oxyhydroxide nanoparticles by data-driven lattice correlation evaluation. Communications Chemistry. doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01513-2.
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