The core of the facility is four common, shared laboratories which provide essential services as the basis for materials and sample preparation and characterisation. These laboratories primarily support the activities of a number of interdisciplinary research groupings. |
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Steady State Spectroscopy Laboratory
 Spectroscopic analysis is fundamental to the understanding of both the properties of materials and chemical, physical and biological processes. It is a basic tool for the development of novel materials and new technologies. It is furthermore routinely used for analysis, problem solving and diagnosis. Any one regime of spectroscopy can only probe a limited range of physical properties, however, and therefore the availability of a full range of techniques is essential for any competitive research programme. The steady state spectroscopy laboratory houses a suite of spectroscopic instruments including ultraviolet/visible/near infra red absorption spectrometer and a Fourier Transform infrared microscope allowing measurement of material absorption continuously from the uv to the ir , a fluorescence spectrometer allowing measurement of luminescence across the visible, a Raman spectroscopic microscope providing vibrational analysis which complements the FTIR, and a scanning polarimeter for measurement of circular dichroism and optical rotary dispersion across the visible spectrum, the only instrument of its type in the country. A range of voltage and current sources are available for in situ spectroelectronic and measurements can be performed over a wide temperature range (20K – 600K). Follow a link below for details on each available system::
Perkin Elmer Lambda 900 UV/VIS/NIR Spectrometer
Perkin Elmer LS55B Luminescence Spectrometer
Instruments S.A. Labram 1B
Perkin Elmer Spectrum GX FT-IR Microscope
Jasco J-810 Spectropolarimeter
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Microscopy Laboratory
 The microscopy laboratory allows the 2-D and 3-D observation and study of physical, chemical and biological samples. The laboratory includes light microscopes, configured specifically for wide-ranging applications such as phase contrast, fluorescence, , bright field and dark field The Zeiss LSM confocal laser scanning microscope allows blur-free, crisp images of thick specimens at various depths to be produced. A 3-D reconstruction of a specimen can be generated by stacking 2-D optical sections collected one after the other. Fluorescence spectra can be recorded with the spectrometer attachment. The META detector system allows separation of fluorophores with overlapping emission spectra through unique lambda stacking technology.
A room temperature atomic force microscope allows imaging in the native liquid environment with resolution 100 – 1000 times that of optical microscopy and comparable to or better than electron microscopy. Dynamic processes can be imaged in progress eliminating the time-consuming and often damaging sample preparation for electron microscopy. This is particularly useful for biological materials where live cells can be imaged in physiological fluids.
Unlike scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), force microscopy does not rely on a flow of charge from tip to surface and so can be used for imaging insulators as well as conductors and semiconductors. As the movement of the tip when in contact with a sample is dominated by local friction effects, contact AFM is also an important tool in the study of local tribological effects such as thin film lubrication and wear resistance. Additionally, using a magnetic tip arrangement, magnetic force microscopy (MFM) can be used to produce a magnetic domain map of surfaces, giving an insight into the local electronic structure of novel materials
This laboratory is an essential core resource enabling the optical characterisation of the wide range of sample types involved. Follow a link below for details on each available system:
Confocal Laser Scanninng Microscope, Zeiss LSM 510
White light Interferometric Surface Profiler
Olympus SZX12 Research Stereo Microscope
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Transient Spectroscopy Laboratory
 Time resolved spectroscopy may be used to study the concentration, chemical nature and kinetics of transient species. Most commonly the transient species are molecular systems in an electronically excited state or reactive intermediates formed during some previous chemical reaction. Such spectroscopy is of fundamental importance in the study of systems that operate via excited state mechanisms such as luminescent molecules and materials capable of photoinduced electron or energy transfer. Transient spectroscopy represents an important core facility to support research in photophysics, photochemistry and photobiology.
The transient spectroscopy laboratory is comprised of two fundamental experiments, time-resolved single photon counting, for emission studies and time resolved absorption spectroscopy. Time correlated single photon counting is the method of choice for emission studies as it provides a substantial variety of time resolutions, from 100 ps to microseconds.
Where the transient species does not emit, its absorption spectrum may be detected by time-resolved absorption spectroscopy. The instrument is comprised of a Q-switched Nd-YAG laser for photoexcitation, equipped with harmonic generating crystals to provide wavelengths of 1064 nm, 532 nm and 355 nm. A pulsed, monitoring arc lamp established in a right angled configuration to the laser will detect transient species generated by the laser pulse at the intensified charge coupled device detector, providing high sensitivity and a single shot measurement over approximately 250 nm spectral window. This arrangement provides time resolved spectroscopy with time resolution up to approximately 20 ns and spectral range of 200 to 1100 nm.
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Sample Preparation Laboratory
 Common to all areas of science are basic facilities to process samples. These include weighing materials, making high purity solutions, fabricating thin films, characterising the properties of thin films (e.g. thickness), processing the films (e.g. polishing), and fabricating more complex structures (e.g. electrode deposition). The sample preparation laboratory provides for many of these basic functions. It also allows for processing materials in dark, vacuum and inert atmospheres.
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| focas institute |
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dublin institute of technology
camden row dublin 8
ireland |
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| +353 1 402 7900 |
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| +353 1 402 7901 |
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| focas@dit.ie |
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