Quartz crystal microbalances (QCMs) are piezoelectric thickness-shear-mode resonators where the resonant frequency has long been known to vary linearly with the mass of rigid layers on the surface when the device is in contact with air. This reports summarizes the results from a Laboratory Directed Research and Development effort to use an array of QCMs to measure and identify volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in water solutions. A total of nine polymer-coated QCMs were tested with varying concentrations of twelve VOCs while frequency and damping voltage were measured. Results from these experiments were analyzed using a Sandia-developed pattern recognition technique called visually empirical region of influence (VERI) developed at Sandia. The VERI analyses of data with up to 16% and 50% sensitivity drifts were carried out on an array with six signals obtained from five sensors. The results indicate that better than 98% and 88% correct chemical recognition is maintained for the 16% and 50% drifts, respectively. These results indicate a good degree of robustness for these sensor films.

This book describes the physics of the second-generation quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), a fundamental method of analysis for soft matter at interfaces. From a device for measuring film thickness in vacuum, the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) has in the past two decades evolved into a versatile instrument for analyzing soft matter at solid/liquid and solid/gas interfaces that found applications in diverse fields including the life sciences, material science, polymer research and electrochemistry. As a consequence of this success, the QCM is now being used by scientists with a wide variety of backgrounds to study an impressive diversity of samples, with intricate data analysis methods being elaborated along the way. It is for these practitioners of the QCM that the book is written. It brings across basic principles behind the technique and the data analysis methods in sufficient detail to be educational and in a format that is accessible to anyone with an undergraduate level knowledge of any of the physical or natural sciences. These principles concern the analysis of acoustic shear waves and build on a number of fundamental physical concepts which many users of the technique do not usually come across. They have counterparts in optical spectroscopy, electrical engineering, quantum mechanics, rheology and mechanics, making this book a useful educational resource beyond the QCM itself. The main focus is the physics of QCM, but as the book describes the behavior of the QCM when exposed to films, droplets, polymer brushes, particles, vesicles, nanobubbles and stick-slip, it also offers insight into the behavior of soft matter at interfaces in a more general sense.

This thesis investigated the interfacial behavior of some selected solutions in contact with one surface of Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM). A device was constructed to monitor viscosity of solutions using fundamental frequency of 9 MHz and 10 MHz quartz crystal. Piezoelectric quartz crystals with gold electrodes were mounted by O-ring in between liquid flow cell. Only one side of the crystal was exposed to the solutions which were pumped through silicon tube by a peristaltic pump. The measured frequency shift was observed in order to investigate the interfacial behavior of some selected solution in contact with one surface of Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM). An analysis of the interaction between an AT-cut quartz crystal microbalance and various liquid system of analytical interest is presented. The analysis which included piezoelectric effects and other influences; liquid properties, experimental conditions and the characteristic of the solution are reported.

This book concisely illustrates the techniques of major surface analysis and their applications to a few key examples. Surfaces play crucial roles in various interfacial processes, and their electronic/geometric structures rule the physical/chemical properties. In the last several decades, various techniques for surface analysis have been developed in conjunction with advances in optics, electronics, and quantum beams. This book provides a useful resource for a wide range of scientists and engineers from students to professionals in understanding the main points of each technique, such as principles, capabilities and requirements, at a glance. It is a contemporary encyclopedia for selecting the appropriate method depending on the reader's purpose.

Applications of Piezoelectric Quartz Crystal Microbalances deals with the theory, design, artifacts, and varied applications of the piezoelectric quartz crystal microbalance. Applications of microbalances range from thin film deposition process control to simultaneous measurement of mass and temperature, analytical chemistry, and space system contamination studies. Stress effects in microbalances are also considered. Comprised of 10 chapters, this volume begins with a historical background and overview of applications of piezoelectric quartz crystal microbalances, followed by an analysis of the theory and practice of microbalances. The role of acoustic impedance in a quartz crystal microbalance and design considerations for a microbalance are given emphasis. Subsequent chapters focus on applications of microbalances in thin film deposition process control; simultaneous measurement of mass and temperature; surface science and analytical chemistry; plasma-assisted etching and space system contamination studies; and aerosol mass measurement. This monograph will be of interest to students and practitioners of physics, chemistry, and materials science.

Handbook of Immunoassay Technologies: Approaches, Performances, and Applications unravels the role of immunoassays in the biochemical sciences. During the last four decades, a wide range of immunoassays has been developed, ranging from the conventional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, to the smartphone-based point-of-care formats. The advances in rapid biochemical procedures, novel biosensing schemes, fully integrated lab-on-a-chip platforms, prolonged biomolecular storage strategies, device miniaturization and interfacing, and emerging smart system technologies equipped with personalized mobile healthcare tools are paving the way to next-generation immunoassays, and are all discussed in this comprehensive text. Immunoassays play a prominent role in clinical diagnostics as they are the eyes of healthcare professionals, helping them make informed clinical decisions via confirmed disease diagnosis, and thus enabling favorable health outcomes. The faster and reliable diagnosis of infections will further control their spread to uninfected persons. Similarly, immunoassays play a prominent role in veterinary diagnostics, food analysis, environmental monitoring, defense and security, and other bioanalytical settings. Therefore, they enable the detection of a plethora of analytes, which includes disease biomarkers, pathogens, drug impurities, environmental contaminants, allergens, food adulterants, drugs of abuse and various biomolecules. - Provides a valuable increase of understanding of cellular and biomedical functions - Gives the most updated resource in the field of immunoassays, providing the comprehensive details of various types of immunoassays that need to be performed in healthcare, and in industrial, environmental and other biochemical settings - Discusses all multifarious aspects of immunoassays - Describes the immunoassay formats, along with their principle of operation, characteristics, pros and cons, and potential biochemical and bioanalytical applications - Provides extensive knowledge and guided insights as detailed by experienced, renowned experts and key opinion makers in the field of immunoassays

Peptides and Proteins as Biomaterials for Tissue Regeneration and Repair highlights the various important considerations that go into biomaterial development, both in terms of fundamentals and applications. After covering a general introduction to protein and cell interactions with biomaterials, the book discusses proteins in biomaterials that mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM). The properties, fabrication and application of peptide biomaterials and protein-based biomaterials are discussed in addition to in vivo and in vitro studies. This book is a valuable resource for researchers, scientists and advanced students interested in biomaterials science, chemistry, molecular biology and nanotechnology. - Presents an all-inclusive and authoritative coverage of the important role which protein and peptides play as biomaterials for tissue regeneration - Explores protein and peptides from the fundamentals, to processing and applications - Written by an international group of leading biomaterials researchers