TY - JOUR A1 - Saleh, Maysoon I. A1 - Panas, I. A1 - Frenzel, Florian A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Rühle, Bastian A1 - Slominskii, Y. A1 - Demchenko, A. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Sensitization of upconverting nanoparticles with a NIR-emissive cyanine dye using a micellar encapsulation approach N2 - Photon upconversion nanomaterials have a wide range of applications, including biosensing and deep-tissue imaging. Their typically very weak and narrow absorption bands together with their size dependent luminescence efficiency can limit their application potential. This has been addressed by increasingly sophisticated core-shell particle architectures including the sensitization with organic dyes that strongly absorb in the near infrared (NIR). In this work, we present a simple water-dispersible micellar system that features energy transfer from the novel NIR excitable dye, 1859 SL with a high molar absorption coefficient and a moderate fluorescence quantum yield to oleate-capped NaYF4:20%Yb(III), 2%Er(III) upconversion nanoparticles (UCNP) upon 808 nm excitation. The micelles were formed using the surfactants Pluronic F-127 and Tween 80 to produce a hydrophilic dye-UCNP system. Successful energy transfer from the dye to the UCNP could be confirmed by emission measurements that revealed the occurrence of upconversion emission upon excitation at 808 nm and an enhancement of the green Er(III) emission compared to direct Er(III) excitation at 808 nm. KW - Upconversion nanoparticles KW - Sensitization KW - NIR dyes KW - Energy transfer PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-472300 DO - https://doi.org/10.1088/2050-6120/aafe1f SN - 2050-6120 VL - 7 IS - 1 (Special issue: Upconversion Methods, Applications and Materials) SP - 014003-1 EP - 014003-9 PB - IOP AN - OPUS4-47230 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Luminescence measurements, calibration strategies and photoluminescence quantum yields N2 - Different types of optical spectroscopies are introduced with special emphasis on method-inherent limitations and reliable instrument calibration and performance validation. In addition, procedures for the determination of spectroscopic key parameters like the photoluminescence quantum yield are presented including required instrument calibrations and material-specific effects related to certain emitters. T2 - Fakultät der University of Ottawa CY - Ottawa, Canada DA - 11.12.2018 KW - Quality assurcance KW - Optical spectroscopy KW - Method comparison KW - Photoluminescence KW - Calibration KW - Performance validation KW - Dye KW - Nanoparticle KW - Quantum dots KW - Quantum yields KW - Uncertainty KW - Method validation PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-47630 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Roloff, Alexander A1 - Nirmalananthan-Budau, Nithiya A1 - Rühle, Bastian A1 - Borcherding, H. A1 - Thiele, T. A1 - Schedler, U. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Quantification of Aldehydes on Polymeric Microbead Surfaces via Catch and Release of Reporter Chromophores N2 - Aldehyde moieties on 2D-supports or microand nanoparticles can function as anchor groups for the attachment of biomolecules or as reversible binding sites for proteins on cell surfaces. The use of aldehyde-based materials in bioanalytical and medical settings calls for reliable methods to detect and quantify this functionality. We report here on a versatile concept to quantify the accessible aldehyde moieties on particle surfaces through the specific binding and subsequent release of small reporter molecules such as fluorescent dyes and nonfluorescent chromophores utilizing acylhydrazone formation as a reversible covalent labeling strategy. This is representatively demonstrated for a set of polymer microparticles with different aldehyde labeling densities. Excess reporter molecules can be easily removed by washing, eliminating inaccuracies caused by unspecific adsorption to hydrophobic surfaces. Cleavage of hydrazones at acidic pH assisted by a carbonyl trap releases the fluorescent reporters rapidly and quasi-quantitatively and allows for their fluorometric detection at low concentration. Importantly, this strategy separates the signal-generating molecules from the bead surface. This circumvents common issues associated with light scattering and signal distortions that are caused by binding-induced changes in reporter fluorescence as well as quenching dye− dye interactions on crowded particle surfaces. In addition, we demonstrate that the release of a nonfluorescent chromophore via disulfide cleavage and subsequent quantification by absorption spectroscopy gives comparable results, verifying that both assays are capable of rapid and sensitive quantification of aldehydes on microbead surfaces. These strategies enable a quantitative comparison of bead batches with different functionalization densities, and a qualitative prediction of their coupling efficiencies in bioconjugations, as demonstrated in reductive amination reactions with Streptavidin. KW - Fluorescent label KW - Surface group quantification KW - Polymer particle KW - Cleavable linker KW - Catch and release assay PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.8b05515 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 91 IS - 14 SP - 8827 EP - 8834 PB - ACS Publications AN - OPUS4-48284 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Stroyuk, O. A1 - Weigert, Florian A1 - Raevskaya, A. A1 - Spranger, F. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Gaponik, N. A1 - Zahn, D. R. T. T1 - Inherently broadband photoluminescence in Ag−In−S/ZnS quantum dots observed in ensemble and single-particle studies N2 - We present a series of results that demonstrate that the broadband photoluminescence (PL) of aqueous glutathione-capped Ag−In−S (AIS) nanocrystals (NCs) is an inherent property of each NC, rather than a collective characteristic of an NC ensemble. By analyzing parameters affecting the PL features such as the postsynthesis annealing and the deposition of a passivating ZnS shell, we found no correlation between the spectral width of the PL band of AIS (AIS/ZnS) NCs and the density of the lattice defects. Analysis of the PL spectra of a series of size-selected AIS/ZnS NCs revealed that the PL width of fractionated NCs does not depend on the NC size and size distribution. The PL measurements in a broad temperature window from 320 to 10 K demonstrated that the PL width does not decrease with decreasing temperature as expected for an emission arising from thermally activated detrapping processes. Also, we show that the model of the self-trapped exciton can be versatilely applied to reconstruct the PL spectra of different AIS NCs and can account for the effects typically attributed to variations in defect state energy. Measurements of the PL properties of single AIS/ZnS NCs highlighted the broadband nature of the emission of individual NCs. The presented results show that the broadband PL of ternary NCs most probably does not originate from lattice defects but involves the NC lattice as a whole, and, therefore, by tailoring the NC structure, PL efficiencies as high as those reported for binary cadmium or lead chalcogenide NCs can be potentially reached. KW - Nano KW - Nanomaterial KW - Ternary quantum dots KW - AIS KW - Semiconductor nanocrystal KW - Photoluminescence KW - Mechanism KW - Single particle spectroscopy KW - Quantum yield KW - Photophysics PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.8b11835 SN - 1932-7447 VL - 123 IS - 4 SP - 2632 EP - 2641 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-47419 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Cui A1 - Otto, S. A1 - Dorn, M. A1 - Heinze, K. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Luminescent TOP nanosensors for simultaneously measuring temperature, oxygen, and pH at a single excitation wavelength N2 - Two nanosensors for simultaneous optical measurements of the bioanalytically and biologically relevant analytes temperature (“T”), oxygen (“O”), and pH (“P”) have been designed. These “TOP” nanosensors are based on 100 nmsized silica-coated polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-NPs) doped with a near-infrared emissive oxygen- and temperature-sensitive chromium(III) complex ([Cr(ddpd)2][BPh4]3, CrBPh4) and an inert reference dye (Nile Red, NR or 5,10,15,20tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl) porphyrin, TFPP) and are covalently labeled with pHsensitive fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). These emitters can be excited at the same wavelength and reveal spectrally distinguishable emission bands, allowing for ratiometric intensity-based and time-resolved studies in the visible and near-infrared wavelength region. Studies in PBS buffer solutions and in a model body liquid demonstrate the applicability of these nanosensors for the sensitive luminescence readout of TOP simultaneously at the same spatialposition. KW - Medical diagnostics KW - Sensor KW - Nanoparticle KW - Fluorescence KW - Nanosensor KW - Oxygen KW - Temperature KW - pH KW - Ratiometric KW - Lifetime KW - NIR KW - Cr(III) complex KW - Dye KW - FITC KW - Environment PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.8b05060 SN - 0003-2700 VL - 91 IS - 3 SP - 2337 EP - 2344 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-47455 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Palo, Emilia A1 - Soukka, Tero A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Colour-optimized quantum yields of Yb, Tm Co-doped upconversion nanocrystals N2 - Wepresent here a systematic analysis of the influence of Tm3+ Doping concentrations (xTm) on the excitation power (P)-dependent upconversion luminescence and -performance of hexagonal-Phase NaYF4: 20% Yb3+, xTm%Tm3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) for xTm of 0.2, 0.5, 0.8, 1.2, and 2.0, respectively. Our results reveal the influence of these differentTm3+ doping concentrations with respect to optimized upconversion quantum yield (ΦUC) values of the variousTm3+ upconversion emission bands, with the highestΦUC values of theTm3+ emission bands above 700 nmresulting for different xTm values as theTm3+ emission bands below 700 nm. This underlines the potential ofTm3+ dopant concentration for colour tuning. Special emphasis was dedicated to the spectroscopic parameters that can be linked to the (de)population pathways of the variousTm3+ energy levels, like the P- and xTm-dependent slope factors and the intensity ratios of selected emission bands. The evaluation of all parameters indicates that not only energy transfer upconversion-, but also crossrelaxation processes between neighbouringTm3+ ions play a vital role in the (de)population of the excited energy levels of Yb3+, Tm3+ codoped nanocrystals. KW - Nano KW - Nanomaterial KW - Upconversion nanoparticle KW - Lanthanide KW - Photoluminescence KW - Mechanism KW - Quantum yield KW - Photophysics KW - Lifetime PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1088/2050-6120/ab023b SN - 2050-6120 VL - 7 IS - 2 SP - 024001, 1 EP - 6 PB - IOP AN - OPUS4-47420 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Wang, Cui A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Luminescent TOP nanosensors for simultaneously measuring temperature, oxygen, and pH at a single excitation wavelength N2 - Two nanosensors for simultaneous optical measurements of temperature (“T”), oxygen (“O”), and pH (“P”) have been designed. These “TOP” nanosensors are based on 100 nm-sized silica-coated polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-NPs) doped with the near infrared emissive oxygen- and temperature-sensitive chromium(III) complex ([Cr(ddpd)2][BPh4]3 CrBPh4)[1][2] and an inert reference fluorescence dye (Nile Red NR or 5,10,15,20tetrakis-(pentafluorophenyl) porphyrin TFPP) and are covalently labeled with the pHsensitive fluorophore fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). These emitters can be excited at the same wavelength and reveal distinguishable emission spectra suitable for ratiometric intensity-based and time-resolved studies in the visible and near infrared spectral region. The core-shell nanostructure of these sensors reveals high colloidal stability in various aqueous media. Studies in PBS buffer solutions and in a model body liquid demonstrate the applicability of the TOP nanosensors for optically detecting the three bioanalytically and biologically relevant analytes temperature, oxygen and pH simultaneously at the same position. T2 - ANAKON 2019 CY - Münster, Germany DA - 25.03.2019 KW - Sensor KW - Nanoparticle KW - Nanosensor KW - Fluorescence KW - Oxygen KW - Temperature KW - pH KW - Ratiometric KW - Lifetime KW - NIR KW - Cr(III) complex KW - FITC KW - Dye KW - Environment KW - Medical diagnostics PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-47698 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bergstrand, J. A1 - Li, Q. A1 - Huang, B. A1 - Peng, X. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Zhan, Q. A1 - Widengren, J. A1 - Agren, H. A1 - Liu, H. T1 - On the decay time of upconversion luminescence N2 - In this study, we systematically investigate the decay characteristics of upconversion luminescence (UCL) under anti-Stokes excitation through numerical simulations based on rate-equation models. We find that a UCL decay profile generally involves contributions from the sensitizer’s excited-state lifetime, energy transfer and cross-relaxation processes. It should thus be regarded as the overall temporal response of the whole upconversion system to the excitation function rather than the intrinsic lifetime of the luminescence emitting state. Only under certain conditions, such as when the effective lifetime of the sensitizer’s excited state is significantly shorter than that of the UCL emitting state and of the absence of cross-relaxation processes involving the emitting energy level, the UCL decay time approaches the intrinsic lifetime of the emitting state. Subsequently, Stokes excitation is generally preferred in order to accurately quantify the intrinsic lifetime of the emitting state. However, possible cross-relaxation between doped ions at high doping levels can complicate the decay characteristics of the luminescence and even make the Stokesexcitation approach fail. A strong cross-relaxation process can also account for the power dependence of the decay characteristics of UCL. KW - Nano KW - Nanomaterial KW - Upconversion nanoparticle KW - Lanthanide KW - Photoluminescence KW - Mechanism KW - Quantum yield KW - Photophysics KW - Lifetime KW - Modeling PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8nr10332a VL - 11 IS - 11 SP - 4959 EP - 4969 PB - RSC Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-47888 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Determining Photoluminescence Quantum Yields of Molecular and Nanocrystal Emitters in the UV/vis/NIR/SWIR N2 - The comparison of different emitter classes and the rational design of the next generation of molecular and nanoscale reporters require accurate and quantitative photo-luminescence measurements. This is of special importance for all photoluminescence applications in the life and material sciences and nanobiophotonics. In the following, procedures for the determination of the spectroscopic key parameter photoluminescence quantum yield, i.e., the number of emitted per absorbed photons, in the UV/vis/NIR/SWIR are presented including pitfalls and achievable uncertainties and material-specific effects related to certain emitter classes are addressed. T2 - Kolloqium National Center for Nanoscience and Technology CY - Peking, People's Republic of China DA - 18.10.2019 KW - Fluorescence KW - Quantum yield KW - Integrating sphere spectroscopy KW - Dye KW - Nanocrystal KW - NIR KW - SWIR KW - Quantum dot KW - Fluorescence standard KW - Uncertainty KW - Calibration PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-49362 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Photoluminescence at BAM – Photoluminescence at BAM – Photophysical Studies, Quantum Yield Measurements, Multiplexing Strategies, and Standards N2 - Photoluminescence applications in the life and material sciences require bright molecular and nanocrystalline emitters, stimuli-responsive optical probes, signal enhancement, multiplexing, and barcoding strategies and traceable methods to quantify the signal-relevant optical properties of luminescent materials at the ensemble and single molecule/particle level. In this context, current research at Division Biophotonics of BAM is presented ranging from dye and nanocrystal photophysics, absolute measurements of photoluminescence quantum yields in the UV/vis/NIR/SWIR, lifetime multiplexing, and the development of different types of fluorescence standards for validating optical-spectroscopic measurements. T2 - Institutskolloquium IPHT CY - Jena, Germany DA - 22.10.2019 KW - Surface group analysis KW - NIR KW - SWIR KW - Quantum dot KW - Lanthanide KW - Cleavable probe KW - Lifetime KW - Multiplexing KW - Sensor KW - Assay PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-49360 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Nanocrystals with Luminescence in the vis, NIR and SWIR – Photophysics and Applications N2 - Luminescent nanocrystals like core/shell semiconductor quantum dots and lanthanide doped nanophosphors as well as gold nanoclusters with emission in the visible (vis) and particularly in the near infrared (NIR) and short wavelength infrared (SWIR) region have been increasingly used as reporters in the life sciences and for bioimaging studies in the last years. This has led to sophisticated core-shell particle architectures of different chemical composition utilizing semiconductor quantum dots and lanthanide-based nanocrystals and initiated the design of gold nanoclusters with different ligands. In addition, this led to an increasing number of quantitative spectroscopic studies focusing on the key performance parameter photoluminescence quantum yield to identify optimum particle structures. In the following, an overview of different classes of nanocrystalline emitters and their photophysics is provided and examples for the absolute characterization of the photoluminescence properties of these different vis/NIR/SWIR emitters are shown including excitation power density-dependent studies on the ensemble and single particle level. Also, the impact of such measurements on a profound mechanistic understanding of the underlying nonradiative deactivation pathways is highlighted as required for reporter design. T2 - MIMIT 2019 CY - Peking, People's Republic of China DA - 18.10.2019 KW - Fluorescence KW - Quantum yield KW - Integrating sphere spectroscopy KW - Dye KW - Nanocrystal KW - NIR KW - SWIR KW - Quantum dot KW - Lanthanide nanoparticle KW - Old nanocrystal KW - Imaging KW - Lifetime KW - Nanoparticle PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-49361 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Andresen, Elina A1 - Schäferling, M. T1 - Surface modifications for photon-upconversion-based energy-transfer nanoprobes N2 - An emerging class of inorganic optical reporters are nearinfrared (NIR) excitable lanthanide-based upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with multicolor emission and long luminescence lifetimes in the range of several hundred microseconds. For the design of chemical sensors and optical probes that reveal analyte-specific changes in their spectroscopic properties, these nanomaterials must be combined with sensitive indicator dyes that change their absorption and/or fluorescence properties selectively upon interaction with their target analyte, utilizing either resonance energy transfer (RET) processes or reabsorption-related inner filter effects. The rational development of UCNP-based nanoprobes for chemical sensing and imaging in a biological environment requires reliable methods for the Surface functionalization of UCNPs, the analysis and quantification of Surface groups, a high colloidal stability of UCNPs in aqueous media as well as the chemically stable attachment of the indicator molecules, and suitable instrumentation for the spectroscopic characterization of the energy-transfer systems and the derived nanosensors. These topics are highlighted in the following feature article, and examples of functionalized core−shell nanoprobes for the sensing of different biologically relevant analytes in aqueous environments will be presented. Special emphasis is placed on the intracellular sensing of pH. KW - Nano KW - Nanomaterial KW - Upconversion nanoparticle KW - Lanthanide KW - Photoluminescence KW - Quantum yield KW - Photophysics KW - Lifetime KW - Sensor KW - FRET KW - Surface chemistry PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b00238 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 35 IS - 15 SP - 5093 EP - 5113 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-47975 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Luminescent nanocrystals – Photophysics and applications for lifetime multiplexing N2 - Bioanalytical, diagnostic, and security applications require the fast and sensitive determination of a steadily increasing number of analytes or events in parallel in a broad variety of detection formats.[1,2] Ideal candidates for spectral encoding and multiplexing schemes are luminescent nanocrystals like semiconductor quantum dots (QDs), particularly Cd-containing II/VI QDs with their narrow and symmetric emission bands. With the availability of relatively simple and inexpensive instrumentation for time-resolved fluorescence measurements, similar strategies utilizing the compound-specific parameter fluorescence lifetime or fluorescence decay kinetics become increasingly attractive.[3-5] The potential of different types of QDs like II/VI, III/V and Cd-free ternary QDs such as AgInS (AIS) QDs for lifetime-based encoding and multiplexing has been, however, barely utilized, although the lifetimes of these nanocrystals cover a time windows which is barely accessible with other fluorophores. Here we present a brief insight into the photophysics of AIS QDs and show the potential of dye- and QD-encoded beads for lifetime-based encoding and detection schemes in conjunction with flow cytometry and fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy T2 - Nanax 2019 CY - Hamburg, Germany DA - 16.09.2019 KW - Nano KW - Microparticle KW - Bead KW - Encoding KW - Lifetime KW - Multiplexing KW - Flow cytometry KW - Bead-based assay KW - Fluorescence KW - Dye KW - LT-FCM KW - Time-resolved flow cytometry KW - Method PY - 2019 AN - OPUS4-49039 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Radunz, Sebastian A1 - Wedepohl, S. A1 - Röhr, Mathilde A1 - Calderón, M. A1 - Tschiche, H. R. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - pH-Activatable Singlet Oxygen-Generating Boron-dipyrromethenes N2 - Singlet oxygen can severely damage biological tissue, which is exploited in photodynamic therapy (PDT). In PDT, the effective range is limited by the distribution of the photosensitizer (PS) and the illuminated area. However, no distinction is made between healthy and pathological tissue, which can cause undesired damage. This encouraged us to exploit the more acidic pH of cancerous tissue and design pH-controllable singlet oxygen-generating boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes. A pH sensitivity of the dyes is achieved by the introduction of an electronically decoupled, photoinduced electron transfer (PET)-capable subunit in meso-position of the BODIPY core. To favor triplet-state formation as required for singlet Oxygen generation, iodine substituents were introduced at the chromophore core. The resulting pH-controlled singlet oxygen-generating dyes with pKa values in the physiological range were subsequently assessed regarding their potential as pH-controlled PS for PDT. Using HeLa cells, we could successfully demonstrate markedly different pH-dependent cytotoxicities upon illumination. KW - Fluorescence KW - Sensor KW - Switch KW - pH KW - Singlet oxygen KW - PDT KW - Cell KW - BODIPY KW - Dye KW - Probe KW - Synthesis PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.9b01873 VL - 63 IS - 4 SP - 1699 EP - 1708 PB - ACS Publications AN - OPUS4-50554 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Huang, J. A1 - Tarábek, J. A1 - Kulkarni, R. A1 - Wang, Cui A1 - Dračínský, M. A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Bojdys, M. J. T1 - A π-conjugated, covalent phosphinine framework N2 - Structural modularity of polymer frameworks is a key advantage of covalent organic polymers, however, only C, N, O, Si and S have found their way into their building blocks so far. Here, we expand the toolbox available to polymer and materials chemists by one additional nonmetal, phosphorus. Starting with a building block that contains a λ⁵‐phosphinine (C₅P) moiety, we evaluate a number of polymerisation protocols, finally obtaining a π‐conjugated, covalent phosphinine‐based framework (CPF‐1) via Suzuki‐Miyaura coupling. CPF‐1 is a weakly porous polymer glass (72.4 m2 g‐1 N2 BET at 77 K) with green fluorescence (λmax 546 nm) and extremely high thermal stability. The polymer catalyzes hydrogen evolution from water under UV and visible light irradiation without the need for additional co‐catalyst at a rate of 33.3 μmol h‐¹ g‐¹. Our results demonstrate for the first time the incorporation of the phosphinine motif into a complex polymer framework. Phosphinine‐based frameworks show promising electronic and optical properties that might spark future interest in their applications in light‐emitting devices and heterogeneous catalysis. KW - Phosphinine KW - Fully aromatic frameworks KW - Suzuki-Miyaura coupling KW - Polymers KW - Fluorescence KW - Small-angle scattering PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-485330 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.201900281 SP - 2 EP - 10 PB - Wiley VCH-Verlag CY - Weinheim AN - OPUS4-48533 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wiesholler, L. M. A1 - Frenzel, Florian A1 - Grauel, Bettina A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Hirsch, T. ED - Resch-Genger, Ute ED - Hirsch, Thomas T1 - Yb,Nd,Er-doped upconversion nanoparticles: 980 nm versus 808 nm excitation N2 - Yb,Nd,Er-doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) have attracted considerable interest as luminescent reporters for bioimaging, sensing, energy conversion/shaping, and anticounterfeiting due to their capability to convert multiple near-infrared (NIR) photons into shorter wavelength ultraviolet, visible or NIR luminescence by successive absorption of two or more NIR photons. This enables optical measurements in complex media with very little background and high penetration depths for bioimaging. The use of Nd3+ as substitute for the commonly employed sensitizer Yb3+ or in combination with Yb3+ shifts the excitation wavelength from about 980 nm, where the absorption of water can weaken upconversion luminescence, to about 800 nm, and laser-induced local overheating effects in cells, tissue, and live animal studies can be minimized. To systematically investigate the potential of Nd3+ doping, we assessed the performance of a set of similarly sized Yb3+,Nd3+,Er3+-doped core- and core–shell UCNPs of different particle architecture in water at broadly varied excitation power densities (P) with steady state and time-resolved fluorometry for excitation at 980 nm and 808 nm. As a measure for UCNPs performance, the P-dependent upconversion quantum yield (Φ) and its saturation behavior were used as well as particle brightness (B). Based upon spectroscopic measurements at both excitation wavelengths in water and in a lipid phantom and B-based calculations of signal size at different penetration depths, conditions under which excitation at 808 nm is advantageous are derived and parameters for the further optimization of triple-doped UCNPs are given. KW - Lanthanide KW - Upconversion KW - Nanoparticle KW - Photoluminescence KW - Quantum yield KW - Lifetime KW - Brightness KW - Nd excitation KW - Excitation power density KW - Modelling KW - NIR PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/C9NR03127H SN - 2040-3372 SN - 2040-3364 VL - 11 IS - 28 SP - 13440 EP - 13449 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - London AN - OPUS4-48608 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Brunet, G. A1 - Marin, R. A1 - Monk, Melissa-Jane A1 - Galico, D. A. A1 - Sigoli, F. A. A1 - Suturina, E. A. A1 - Hemmer, E. A1 - Murugesu, M. T1 - Exploring the dual functionality of an Ytterbium complex for luminescence thermometry and slow magnetic relaxation† N2 - We present a comprehensive investigation of the magnetic and optical properties of an ytterbium complex, which combines two desirable and practical features into a single molecular system. Based upon YbIII Ions that promote near-infrared optical activity and a chemical backbone that is ideal for an in-depth understanding of the magnetic behaviour, we have designed a multifunctional opto-magnetic species that operates as a luminescent thermometer and as a single-molecule magnet (SMM). Our magnetic investigations, in conjunction with ab initio calculations, reveal one of the highest energy barriers reported for an YbIII-based complex. Moreover, we correlate this anisotropic barrier with the Emission spectrum of the compound, wherein we provide a complete assignment of the energetic profile of the complex. Such studies lay the foundation for the design of exciting multi-faceted materials that are able to retain information at the single-molecule level and possess built-in thermal self-monitoring capabilities. KW - Magnetic KW - Fluorescence KW - NIR KW - Temperature KW - Dual sensing KW - Sensor KW - Yb(III) complex KW - Lanthanide KW - Quantum yield KW - Quality assurance PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-486659 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c9sc00343f VL - 10 IS - 28 SP - 6799 EP - 6808 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-48665 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rietsch, P. A1 - Witte, F. A1 - Sobottka, S. A1 - Germer, G. A1 - Becker, A. A1 - Güttler, Arne A1 - Sarkar, B. A1 - Paulus, B. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Eigler, S. T1 - Diaminodicyanoquinones: Fluorescent dyes with high dipole moments and electron-acceptor properties N2 - Fluorescent dyes are applied in various fields of research,includingsolarcellsandlight-emittingdevices,andas reporters for assays and bioimaging studies.Fluorescent dyes with an added high dipole moment pave the way to nonlinear optics and polarity sensitivity.Redox activity makes it possible to switch the moleculeQsphotophysical properties.Diaminodicyanoquinone derivatives possess high dipole moments,yet only lowfluorescence quantum yields,and have therefore been neglected as fluorescent dyes.Here we investigate the fluorescencepropertiesofdiaminodicyanoquinonesusingacombined theoretical and experimental approach and derive molecules with afluorescence quantum yield exceeding 90%. The diaminodicyanoquinone core moiety provides chemical versatility and can be integrated into novel molecular architectures with unique photophysical features. KW - Dipole moment KW - Fluorescence KW - Quantum yield KW - Quinones PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201903204 SN - 1433-7851 SN - 1521-3773 VL - 58 IS - 24 SP - 8235 EP - 8239 PB - Wiley Online Libary CY - Weihnheim AN - OPUS4-48890 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Nirmalananthan-Budau, Nithiya A1 - Rühle, Bastian A1 - Geißler, Daniel A1 - Moser, Marko A1 - Kläber, Christopher A1 - Schäfer, A. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Multimodal cleavable reporters for quantifying carboxy and amino groups on organic and inorganic nanoparticles N2 - Organic and inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used as drug carriers, fluorescent sensors, and multimodal labels in the life and material sciences. These applications require knowledge of the chemical nature, total number of surface groups, and the number of groups accessible for subsequent coupling of e.g., antifouling ligands, targeting bioligands, or sensor molecules. To establish the concept of catch-and-release assays, cleavable probes were rationally designed from a quantitatively cleavable disulfide moiety and the optically detectable reporter 2-thiopyridone (2-TP). For quantifying surface groups on nanomaterials, first, a set of monodisperse carboxy-and amino-functionalized, 100 nm-sized polymer and silica NPs with different surface group densities was synthesized. Subsequently, the accessible functional groups (FGs) were quantified via optical spectroscopy of the cleaved off reporter after its release in solution. Method validation was done with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) utilizing the sulfur atom of the cleavable probe. This comparison underlined the reliability and versatility of our probes, which can be used for surface group quantification on all types of transparent, scattering, absorbing and/or fluorescent particles. The correlation between the total and accessible number of FGs quantified by conductometric titration, qNMR, and with our cleavable probes, together with the comparison to results of conjugation studies with differently sized biomolecules reveal the potential of catch-and-release reporters for surface analysis. Our findings also underline the importance of quantifying particularly the accessible amount of FGs for many applications of NPs in the life sciences. KW - Advanced Materials KW - Surface Chemistry KW - Organic–inorganic nanostructures KW - Funtional Groups KW - Quantitative Analysis PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-499081 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-53773-3 VL - 9 SP - 17577-1 EP - 17577-11 PB - Springer Nature CY - London AN - OPUS4-49908 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Natte, Kishore A1 - Behnke, Thomas A1 - Orts Gil, Guillermo A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Friedrich, Jörg Florian A1 - Österle, Werner A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Synthesis and characterisation of highly fluorescent core-shell nanoparticles based on Alexa dyes N2 - Current and future developments in the emerging field of nanobiotechnology are closely linked to the rational design of novel fluorescent nanomaterials, e.g. for biosensing and imaging applications. Here, the synthesis of bright near infrared (NIR)-emissive nanoparticles based on the grafting of silica nanoparticles (SNPs) with 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane (APTES) followed by covalent attachment of Alexa dyes and their subsequent shielding by an additional silica shell are presented. These nanoparticles were investigated by dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and fluorescence spectroscopy. TEM studies revealed the monodispersity of the initially prepared and fluorophorelabelled silica particles and the subsequent formation of raspberry-like structures after addition of a silica precursor.Measurements of absolute fluorescence Quantum yields of these scattering particle suspensions with an integrating sphere setup demonstrated the influence of dye labelling density-dependent fluorophore Aggregation on the signaling behaviour of such nanoparticles. KW - Silica KW - Alexa dyes KW - Fluorescent particles KW - Quantum yields KW - Nanoparticles KW - Protective shell KW - Nanobiotechnology PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-011-0680-9 SN - 1388-0764 SN - 1572-896X VL - 14 IS - 2 SP - 680-1 - 680-10 PB - Kluwer CY - Dordrecht AN - OPUS4-25872 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Saleh, Maysoon I. A1 - Rühle, Bastian A1 - Wang, Shu A1 - Radnik, Jörg A1 - You, Yi A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Assessing the protective effects of different surface coatings on NaYF4:YB3+, Er3+, upconverting nanoparticles in buffer and DMEM N2 - We studied the dissolution behavior of β NaYF4:Yb(20%), Er(2%) UCNP of two different sizes in biologically relevant media i.e., water (neutral pH), phosphate buffered saline (PBS), and Dulbecco’s modified Eagle medium (DMEM) at different temperatures and particle concentrations. Special emphasis was dedicated to assess the influence of different surface functionalizations, particularly the potential of mesoporous and microporous silica shells of different thicknesses for UCNP stabilization and protection. Dissolution was quantified electrochemically using a fluoride ion selective electrode (ISE) and by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). In addition, dissolution was monitored fluorometrically. These experiments revealed that a thick microporous silica shell drastically decreased dissolution. Our results also underline the critical influence of the chemical composition of the aqueous environment on UCNP dissolution. In DMEM, we observed the formation of a layer of adsorbed molecules on the UCNP surface that protected the UCNP from dissolution and enhanced their fluorescence. Examination of this layer by X ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and mass spectrometry (MS) suggested that mainly phenylalanine, lysine, and glucose are adsorbed from DMEM. These findings should be considered in the future for cellular toxicity studies with UCNP and other nanoparticles and the design of new biocompatible surface coatings. KW - Fluorescence KW - Lifetime KW - Method KW - Quantification KW - Stability KW - Coating KW - Surface chemistry KW - Lanthanide KW - Fluoride KW - Electrochemistry KW - ICP-OES KW - Upconversion KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Aging KW - Quality assurance KW - Mass spectrometry KW - XPS PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-515984 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-76116-z SN - 2045-2322 VL - 10 IS - 1 SP - 19318-1 EP - 19318-11 PB - Springer Nature CY - London AN - OPUS4-51598 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Perspective of BAM on Advanced Materials N2 - A brief perspective of BAM on advanced materials is presented including examples for nanomaterials and other systems presenting advanced materials with special emphasis on characterization methods used in different division of BAM for the determination of functional or safety parameters of such materials. In this respect, also ongoing activities of the capacity building project nanoplatform of BAM aiming at the development of nanometer-sized reference materials are briefly summarized. T2 - BfR Workshop zu Advanced Materials CY - Online meeting DA - 04.11.2020 KW - Quality assurance KW - Risk assessment KW - Safety KW - Core/shell particle KW - Characterization KW - Measurement uncertainty KW - Method KW - Nano particle PY - 2020 AN - OPUS4-51620 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Geißler, Daniel A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Quantification of anisotropy-related uncertainties in relative photoluminescence quantum yield measurements of nanomaterials - semiconductor quantum dots and rods N2 - In order to assess the anisotropy-related uncertainties of relatively determined photoluminescence quantum yields (ΦPL) of molecular emitters and luminescent nanomaterials, we compared ΦPL values measured without and with polarizers using magic angle conditions and studied systematically the dependence of the detected emission intensity on the polarizer settings for samples of varying anisotropy. This includes a dispersion of a spherical quantum dot (QD) with an ideally isotropic emission, a solution of a common small organic dye in a fluid solvent as well as dispersions of elongated quantum dot rods (QDR) with an anisotropic luminescence and a small organic dye in a rigid polymeric matrix, as ideally anisotropic emitter. Our results show that for instruments lacking polarizers, anisotropy-related measurement uncertainties of relative photoluminescence quantum yields can amount to more than 40%, with the size of these systematic errors depending on the difference in emission anisotropy between the sample and the standard. KW - Photoluminescence KW - Quantum Yield KW - Emission Anisotropy KW - Quantum Dot Rod KW - Quantum Dot KW - Dye PY - 2015 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-325240 DO - https://doi.org/10.1515/zpch-2014-0626 SN - 0942-9352 SN - 2196-7156 SN - 0044-3336 SN - 0044-3328 VL - 229 IS - 1-2 SP - 153 EP - 165 PB - Oldenbourg CY - München AN - OPUS4-32524 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, X. A1 - Pauli, Jutta A1 - Niessner, R. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Knopp, D. T1 - Gold nanoparticle-catalyzed uranine reduction for signal amplification in fluorescent assays for melamine and aflatoxin B1 N2 - A multifunctional fluorescence platform has been constructed based on gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-catalyzed uranine reduction. The catalytic reduction of uranine was conducted in aqueous solution using AuNPs as nanocatalyst and sodium borohydride as reducing reagent, which was monitored by fluorescence and UV-vis spectroscopy. The reaction rate was highly dependent on the concentration, size and dispersion state of AuNPs. When AuNPs aggregated, their catalytic ability decreased, and thereby a label-free fluorescent assay was developed for the detection of melamine, which can be used for melamine determination in milk. In addition, a fluorescent immunoassay for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) was established using the catalytic reaction for signal amplification based on target-induced concentration change of AuNPs, where AFB1-BSA-coated magnetic beads and anti-AFB1 antibody-conjugated AuNPs were employed as capture and signal probe, respectively. The detection can be accomplished in 1 h and acceptable recoveries in spiked maize samples were achieved. The developed fluorescence system is simple, sensitive and specific, which could be used for the detection of a wide range of analytes. PY - 2015 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-347677 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c5an01300c SN - 0003-2654 SN - 1364-5528 VL - 140 IS - 21 SP - 7305 EP - 7312 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-34767 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Geißler, Daniel A1 - Gollwitzer, C. A1 - Sikora, A. A1 - Minelli, C. A1 - Krumrey, M. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Effect of fluorescent staining on size measurements of polymeric nanoparticles using DLS and SAXS N2 - The influence of fluorescence on nanoparticle size measurements using dynamic light scattering (DLS) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) was investigated. For this purpose, two series of 100 nm-sized polymer nanoparticles stained with different concentrations of the fluorescent dyes DY555 and DY680 were prepared, absorbing/emitting at around 560 nm/590 nm and 695 nm/715 nm, respectively. SAXS measurements of these particle series and a corresponding blank control (without dye) revealed similar sizes of all particles within an uncertainty of 1 nm. DLS measurements carried out at three different laboratories using four different DLS instruments and two different laser wavelengths, i.e., 532 nm and 633 nm, revealed also no significant changes in size (intensity-weighted harmonic mean diameter, ZAverage) and size distribution (polydispersity index, PI) within and between the two dye-stained particle series and the blank sample. Nevertheless, a significant decrease of the detected correlation coefficients was observed with increasing dye concentration, due to the increased absorption of the incident light and thus, less coherent light scattering. This effect was wavelength dependent, i.e. only measurable for the dye-stained particles that absorb at the laser wavelength used for the DLS measurements. PY - 2015 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-349684 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/C5AY02005K SN - 1759-9660 SN - 1759-9679 VL - 7 IS - 23 SP - 9785 EP - 9790 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-34968 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Srivastava, Priyanka A1 - Tavernaro, Isabella A1 - Scholtz, Lena A1 - Genger, C. A1 - Welker, P. A1 - Schreiber, Frank A1 - Meyer, Klas A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Dual color pH probes made from silica and polystyrene nanoparticles and their performance in cell studies N2 - Ratiometric green–red fluorescent nanosensors for fluorometrically monitoring pH in the acidic range were designed from 80 nm-sized polystyrene (PS) and silica (SiO2) nanoparticles (NPs), red emissive reference dyes, and a green emissive naphthalimide pH probe, analytically and spectroscopically characterized, and compared regarding their sensing performance in aqueous dispersion and in cellular uptake studies. Preparation of these optical probes, which are excitable by 405 nm laser or LED light sources, involved the encapsulation of the pH-inert red-fuorescent dye Nile Red (NR) in the core of self-made carboxylated PSNPs by a simple swelling procedure and the fabrication of rhodamine B (RhB)-stained SiO2-NPs from a silane derivative of pH-insensitive RhB. Subsequently, the custom-made naphthalimide pH probe, that utilizes a protonation-controlled photoinduced electron transfer process, was covalently attached to the carboxylic acid groups at the surface of both types of NPs. Fluorescence microscopy studies with the molecular and nanoscale optical probes and A549 lung cancer cells confirmed the cellular uptake of all probes and their penetration into acidic cell compartments, i.e., the lysosomes, indicated by the switching ON of the green naphthalimide fluorescence. This underlines their suitability for intracellular pH sensing, with the SiO2-based nanosensor revealing the best performance regarding uptake speed and stability. KW - Sensors KW - Silica and polystyrene nanoparticles KW - pH probe KW - Fluorescence spectroscopy KW - Cell studies KW - Dye KW - Particle synthesis PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-569198 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-28203-0 SN - 2045-2322 VL - 13 IS - 1 SP - 1321 EP - 1336 PB - Nature CY - London AN - OPUS4-56919 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Nordholt, Niclas A1 - O'Hara, Kate A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Blaskovich, M. A1 - Rühle, Bastian A1 - Schreiber, Frank T1 - A fluorescently labelled quaternary ammonium compound (NBD-DDA) to study resistance mechanisms in bacteria N2 - Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) are widely used as active agents in disinfectants, antiseptics, and preservatives. Despite being in use since the 1940s, there remain multiple open questions regarding their detailed mode-of-action and the mechanisms, including phenotypic heterogeneity, that can make bacteria less susceptible to QACs. To facilitate studies on resistance mechanisms towards QACs, we synthesized a fluorescent quaternary ammonium compound, namely N-dodecyl-N,N-dimethyl-[2-[(4-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazol-7-yl)amino]ethyl]azanium-iodide (NBD-DDA). NBD-DDA is readily detected by flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy with standard GFP/FITC-settings, making it suitable for molecular and single-cell studies. As a proof-of-concept, NBD-DDA was then used to investigate resistance mechanisms which can be heterogeneous among individual bacterial cells. Our results reveal that the antimicrobial activity of NBD-DDA against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa is comparable to that of benzalkonium chloride (BAC), a widely used QAC, and benzyl-dimethyl-dodecylammonium chloride (BAC12), a mono-constituent BAC with alkyl-chain length of 12 and high structural similarity to NBD-DDA. Characteristic time-kill kinetics and increased tolerance of a BAC tolerant E. coli strain against NBD-DDA suggest that the mode of action of NBD-DDA is similar to that of BAC. As revealed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), NBD-DDA is preferentially localized to the cell envelope of E. coli, which is a primary target of BAC and other QACs. Leveraging these findings and NBD-DDA‘s fluorescent properties, we show that reduced cellular accumulation is responsible for the evolved BAC tolerance in the BAC tolerant E. coli strain and that NBD-DDA is subject to efflux mediated by TolC. Overall, NBD-DDA’s antimicrobial activity, its fluorescent properties, and its ease of detection render it a powerful tool to study resistance mechanisms of QACs in bacteria and highlight its potential to gain detailed insights into its mode-of-action. KW - Antimicrobial resistance KW - Bacteria KW - Disinfection KW - Biocides PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-563811 DO - https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2022.1023326 SN - 1664-302X IS - 13 SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - Frontiers Media CY - Lausanne AN - OPUS4-56381 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rua-Ibarz, Ana A1 - Nakadi, Flávio V. A1 - Bolea-Fernandez, Eduardo A1 - Bazo, Antonio A1 - Battistella, Beatrice A1 - Matiushkina, Anna A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Abad Andrade, Carlos Enrique A1 - Resano, Martín T1 - Discrete entity analysis via microwave-induced nitrogen plasma–mass spectrometry in single-event mode N2 - In this work, single-event microwave-induced nitrogen plasma–mass spectrometry (single-event MINP-MS) was evaluated for the first time for the analysis of discrete entities such as nanoparticles, biological cells, and microplastics. Nitrogen (N2) effectively overcomes Ar-based polyatomic interferences, enabling (ultra)trace element determination of Fe and Se using their most abundant isotopes, 56Fe (91.66%) and 80Se (49.82%). Iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe2O3 NPs) ranging from 20 to 70 nm were accurately characterized, with excellent agreement with established sizing techniques, such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). A limit of detection (LoD) of 8.6 ag for Fe─equivalent to an LoDsize of 19 nm for Fe2O3─was achieved, which is significantly lower than recent values reported for high-end quadrupole-based ICP-MS. Selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) of 150 and 250 nm were also accurately characterized, without the N2-based plasma experiencing issues handling relatively large metallic NPs (linearity, R2 = 0.9994). Se-enriched yeast cells (SELM-1 certified reference material) were successfully analyzed via single-cell MINP-MS using external calibration based on SeNPs and a transport efficiency-independent approach. In addition, 2–3 μm polystyrene (PS) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) were accurately sized by monitoring 12C+, confirming the method’s suitability for handling micrometer-sized polymeric materials (microplastics). The average duration of individual events (680 ± 160 μs) suggests that the digestion of individual entities in N2-based plasmas is comparable to that in Ar-based plasmas. These results open new avenues for this instrumentation as an alternative to ICP ionization sources, also in the context of discrete entity analysis. KW - Microwave-Induced Nitrogen Plasma KW - Discrete entity analysis KW - Particle/droplet event counting KW - Comparison to SP-ICP-MS methodologies KW - Nitrogen plasma vs. argon ICP trade-offs KW - Trace elemental quantification at the single-entity level KW - Time-resolved mass spectrometry for discrete entities PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-643825 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.5c04341 SN - 0003-2700 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS) AN - OPUS4-64382 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tavernaro, Isabella A1 - Rajotte, Isabelle A1 - Thibeault, Marie-Pier A1 - Sander, Philipp C. A1 - Kodra, Oltion A1 - Lopinski, Gregory A1 - Radnik, Jörg A1 - Johnston, Linda J. A1 - Brinkmann, Andreas A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Quantifying surface groups on aminated silica nanoparticles of different size, surface chemistry, and porosity with solution NMR, XPS, optical assays, and potentiometric titration N2 - We assessed the quantification of surface amino functional groups (FGs) for a large set of commercial and custom-made aminated silica nanoparticles (SiO2 NPs) with sizes of 20–100 nm, prepared with different sol–gel routes, different amounts of surface amino FGs, and different porosity with four methods providing different, yet connected measurands in a bilateral study of two laboratories, BAM and NRC, with the overall aim to develop standardizable measurements for surface FG quantification. Special emphasis was dedicated to traceable quantitative magnetic resonance spectroscopy (qNMR) performed with dissolved SiO2 NPs. For the cost efficient and automatable screening of the amount of surface amino FGs done in a first step of this study, the optical fluorescamine assay and a potentiometric titration method were utilized by one partner, i.e., BAM, yielding the amount of primary amino FGs accessible for the reaction with a dye precursor and the total amount of (de)protonatable FGs. These measurements, which give estimates of the minimum and maximum number of surface amino FGs, laid the basis for quantifying the amount of amino silane molecules with chemo-selective qNMR with stepwise fine-tuned workflows, involving centrifugation, drying, weighting, dissolution, measurement, and data evaluation steps jointly performed by BAM and NRC. Data comparability and relative standard deviations (RSDs) obtained by both labs were used as quality measures for method optimization and as prerequisites to identify method-inherent limitations to be later considered for standardized measurement protocols. Additionally, the nitrogen (N) to silicon (Si) ratio in the near-surface region of the SiO2 NPs was determined by both labs using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), a well established surface sensitive analytical method increasingly utilized for microparticles and nano-objects which is currently also in the focus of international standardization activities. Overall, our results underline the importance of multi-method characterization studies for quantifying FGs on NMs involving at least two expert laboratories for effectively identifying sources of uncertainty, validating analytical methods, and deriving NM structure–property relationships. KW - Advanced Materials KW - Amino Groups KW - Calibration KW - Characterization KW - Functional groups KW - Method Comparison KW - Nano Particle KW - Validation KW - XPS KW - Optical Assay KW - Quantification KW - Surface Analysis KW - Reference Materials KW - Synthesis KW - Fluorescence PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-649992 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/d5na00794a VL - 7 IS - 21 SP - 6888 EP - 6900 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-64999 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - The emp project smurfnano – Standardizing the quantification of surface functionalities, ligands, and coatings on nanomaterials N2 - For industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, opto-electronics, and information storage, meanwhile engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated. NP function, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by surface functionalities. Reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Also, industry, international standardization organizations, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated and standardized measurement methods and reference materials. These needs are addressed by the recently started European metrology project SMURFnano involving 12 partners from different National Metrology Institutes, designated institutes, and research institutes, two university groups as well as one large company and one SME producing NPs. This project as well as first results derived from the development of test and reference materials with a well characterized surface chemistry and ongoing interlaboratory comparisons will be presented. T2 - LNE Workshop CY - Paris, France DA - 04.11.2025 KW - Quality assurance KW - Fluorescence KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Synthesis KW - Characterization KW - Advanced material KW - Surface KW - Standardization KW - Reference material KW - Functional group KW - Quantification KW - Coating KW - Automation KW - Potentiometry KW - Method KW - Validation KW - Optical assay KW - Fluram KW - qNMR KW - Comparison KW - ILC PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-64725 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Nanocarriers – Challenges Imposed by Material Characterization N2 - A brief perspective of BAM on nanocarriers is presented including examples with special emphasis on the characterization of such materials and underlying challenges. In this respect, also ongoing activities at BAM on different types of core/shell nanomaterials and related systems are briefly summarized. T2 - Kolloquium BfR CY - Online meeting DA - 18.03.2021 KW - Nanomaterial KW - Nanocarrier KW - Size KW - Surface chemistry KW - Release kinetics KW - Chemical composition KW - Core/shell nanoparticle KW - Quantum dot KW - Spectroscopy KW - Fluorescence PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-52412 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Standardised Measurements of Surface Functionalities on Nanoparticles N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, opto-electronics, and information storage which improve the quality of life and European prosperity. NP function, performance, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by their surface functionalities. Standardized repeatable surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, and to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Therefore, industry, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated traceable measurement methods and reference materials. This calls for fit-for-purpose, validated, and standardized methods, and reference data and materials on the surface chemistry of engineered NPs. Here, we present a concept for the development of such standardized measurement protocols utilizing method cross-validation and interlaboratory comparisons (ILCs) with emphasis on both advanced measurement methods such as quantitative Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (qNMR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and cost-efficient, non-surface specific methods like optical assays and electrochemical titration methods. T2 - European Partnership on Metrology 2023 Review Conference CY - Amsterdam, Netherlands DA - 07.11.2023 KW - Surface chemistry KW - Quality assurance KW - Traceability PY - 2023 AN - OPUS4-59142 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Characterization and quantification of functional groups and coatings on nanoobjects an overview N2 - Characterization of Nanoparticles – Questions to Ask, Functional Nanoparticles (NPs) – Organic, Inorganic, and Hybrid Nanoparticles Nanomaterial Characterization Standardization – Addressing Remaining Gaps Surface FGs Particle Surface Chemistry - Why is it Important? Particle Surface Chemistry - A Key Driver for Performance, Applications, and Safety Aspects Method Development for Quantifying FGs and Ligands on Particle Surfaces FG Quantification – Method Choice & Criteria Relevant for Data Interpretation Quantifying the Amount of Total and Accessible FGs on Aminated Silica Nanoparticles (SiO2-NH2) Comparing the Total and Accessible –NH2 Content on Aminated Silica NPs of Different Size Characterization of Nanoparticles Standardization Standardized Measurements of Surface FGs on Nanoparticles EMP Project SMURFnano EMP Project SMURFnano Work Packages & Goals Certified Reference Materials from BAM T2 - e-MRS 2024 (Spring Meeting of the European Materials Research Society, Altech Symposium) CY - Strasbourg, France DA - 27.05.2024 KW - Luminescence KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Quantum yield KW - Quality assurance KW - Interlaboratory comparison KW - Method KW - Uncertainty KW - Reference material KW - Surface analysis KW - Optical assay KW - NMR KW - Silica KW - Ligand PY - 2024 AN - OPUS4-60495 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - The SMURFnano project - standardized measurements of surface functionalities on nanoparticles N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, optoelectronics, and information storage. NP function, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by surface functionalities. Reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Also, industry, international standardization organizations, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated and standardized measurement methods and reference materials. However, methodologies for determining NP surface properties, including the amount, chemical composition, and homogeneity of surface functionalities and coatings are largely non-standardized. Suitable methods for determining surface functionalities on ligand-stabilized core and core/shell NPs include advanced techniques such as traceable quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) as well as X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and simpler optical and electrochemical methods. The latter less costly methods are often used by SMEs, e.g., for quality control. To validate methods, establish measurement uncertainties, test reference materials, and produce reference data, international interlaboratory comparisons (ILC) on NP surface functionalization measurements are required and well characterized test and reference nanomaterials providing benchmark values.[1] These needs are addressed by the recently started European metrology project SMURFnano involving 12 partners from different National Metrology Institutes, designated institutes, and research institutes, two university groups as well as one large company and one SME producing NPs. This project as well as first results derived from the development of test and reference materials with a well characterized surface chemistry and ongoing interlaboratory comparisons will be presented. T2 - eMRS CY - Strasbourg, France DA - 27.05.2025 KW - Quality assurance KW - Reference analysis KW - Standardization KW - Metrology KW - Reference products KW - Reference materials KW - Mission KW - Surface chemistry KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - qNMR KW - XPS KW - Fluorescence KW - Optical assays KW - Interlaboratory comparison KW - Uncertainty PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-63243 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Tavernaro, Isabella A1 - Abram, Sarah-Luise A1 - Homann, Christian A1 - Scholtz, Lena A1 - Radnik, Jörg T1 - Validated and standardized measurements and quantification of surface functionalities on nanoparticles N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, opto-electronics, and information storage which improve the quality of life and European prosperity. Nanoparticle function, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by surface functionalities. Reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Also, industry, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated traceable measurement methods and reference materials. Industry, e.g., must comply with various regulations, including the chemicals´ regulation REACH (2006/1907) and cosmetic products regulation (2009/1223), depending on the use. Therefore, standardization organizations such as the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) as well as industrial stakeholders, European Medicine Agency (EMA), and the nanosafety community responsible for guidelines for nanomaterial (NM) regulation like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have expressed needs for standardized methodologies to measure NP surface chemical properties. Despite these needs, methodologies for determining NP surface properties, including the amount, chemical composition, and homogeneity of surface functionalities and coatings are largely non-standardized. Specifically, validated quantitative procedures for the measurement of thickness and composition of nanoparticle coatings and other surface functionalities are needed. Suitable methods for determining surface functionalities on ligand-stabilized core and core/shell NPs include advanced techniques such as traceable quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) as well as X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and simpler optical and electrochemical methods. The latter less costly methods are often used by SMEs, e.g., for quality control. To validate methods, establish measurement uncertainties, test reference materials, and produce reference data, international interlaboratory comparisons (ILC) on NP surface functionalization measurements are required. These needs have been addressed by us in two interlaboratory comparisons, that will be presented. In addition, the European metrology project SMURFnano will be briefly presented involving 12 partners from different National Metrology Institutes, designated institutes, and research institutes, two university groups as well as one large company and one SME producing NPs. T2 - NanoCarbon Annual Conference 2025 CY - Würzburg, Germany DA - 18.03.2025 KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Silica KW - Quality assurance KW - Reference material KW - Surface chemistry KW - Size KW - Shape KW - Particle number concentration KW - Method KW - Optical assay KW - QNMR KW - Validation KW - Potentiometry KW - XPS PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-62790 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Tavernaro, Isabella A1 - Abram, Sarah-Luise A1 - Homann, Christian A1 - Scholtz, Lena A1 - Radnik, Jörg A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Validated and standardized measurements and quantification of surface functionalities on nanoparticles N2 - Surface-functionalized organic and inorganic engineered nanomaterials (NMs) are widely applied in the life and materials sciences. NM performance depends on key factors such as particle size and shape, crystal phase, morphology, chemical composition, and surface chemistry, i.e., surface coatings, functional groups (FGs), and ligands.1 The latter controls their processability and interaction with the environment and largely their possible toxicity. Thus, methods for FG quantification are important tools for quality control of NM production processes and can foster the sustainable development of functional and safe(r) NMs. This underlines the importance of validated and standardized analytical methods for surface analysis and reference materials.2 This encouraged us to explore simple and versatile tools for quantifying common bioanalytically relevant FGs such as optical assays, electrochemical titration methods, quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (qNMR), and X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and to perform a first interlaboratory comparison (ILC) on surface FG quantification.3,4 In a follow-up ILC, BAM and NRC explored qNMR sample preparation, measurement, and data evaluation protocols for commercial and custom-made aminated SiO2 NPs with sizes of 20-100 nm, different amounts of surface amino FGs, and different porosity.5,6 First, the number of amino FGs accessible for a dye reporter was determined with a cost-efficient, automated optical fluorescamine assay. Then, qNMR workflows and protocols were stepwise fine-tuned. The qNMR ILC was complemented by joint XPS measurements. BAM also examined the applicability of fast and automatable potentiometric titrations to screen the total amount of (de)protonable FGs on aminated SiO2 NPs. Our results underline the need to evaluate protocols for FG quantification in ILCs and the advantages of multi-method characterization strategies for efficient method cross validation. T2 - Surface and Micro/Nano Analysis Working Group CY - Paris, France DA - 08.04.2025 KW - Quality assurance KW - Reference material KW - Fluorescence KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Surface analysis KW - XPS KW - Traceability KW - Metrology KW - Calibration KW - Reference data KW - Reference product KW - Digital certificate KW - QNMR KW - Potentiometry PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-62969 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Quantifying the total and accessible amount of surface functionalities and ligands on nano-materials: Overview and recommended methods N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, opto-electronics, and information storage. NP function, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by surface functionalities. This calls for reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods, which are vital for quality control of NPs, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Validated and standardized workflows for surface analysis are also increasingly requested by industry, international standardization organizations, regulatory agencies, and policymakers. To establish comparable measurements of surface functionalities across different labs and ease instrument performance validation, reference test materials and reference materials of known surface chemistry as well as reference data are needed. In the following, different methods for determining surface functionalities on ligand-stabilized core and core/shell NPs include advanced techniques are presented and discussed regarding method-inherent advantages and limitations. Special emphasis is dedicated to traceable quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR), X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and simpler optical and electrochemical methods. T2 - LNE Workshop CY - Paris, France DA - 04.11.2025 KW - Quality assurance KW - Fluorescence KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Synthesis KW - Characterization KW - Advanced material KW - Surface KW - Standardization KW - Reference material KW - Functional group KW - Quantification KW - Coating KW - Automation KW - Potentiometry KW - Method KW - Validation KW - Optical assay KW - Fluram KW - Fluorescamine KW - qNMR KW - Comparison KW - ILC PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-64726 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Standardized Measurements of Surface - Functionalities on Nanoparticles N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, optoelectronics, and information storage. NP function, interaction with biological species, and environmental fate are largely determined by surface functionalities. Reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. Also, industry, international standardization organizations, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated and standardized measurement methods and reference materials. However, methodologies for determining NP surface properties, including the amount, chemical composition, and homogeneity of surface functionalities and coatings are largely non-standardized. Suitable methods for determining surface functionalities on ligand-stabilized core and core/shell NPs include advanced techniques such as traceable quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) as well as X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and simpler optical and electrochemical methods. The latter less costly methods are often used by SMEs, e.g., for quality control. To validate methods, establish measurement uncertainties, test reference materials, and produce reference data, international interlaboratory comparisons (ILC) on NP surface functionalization measurements are required and well characterized test and reference nanomaterials providing benchmark values.[1] These needs are addressed by the recently started European metrology project SMURFnano involving 12 partners from different National Metrology Institutes, designated institutes, and research institutes, two university groups as well as one large company and one SME producing NPs. This project as well as first results derived from the development of test and reference materials with a well characterized surface chemistry and ongoing interlaboratory comparisons will be presented. T2 - eMRS CY - Strasbourg, France DA - 27.05.2025 KW - Quality assurance KW - Fluorescence KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Synthesis KW - Silica KW - Upconversion nanoparticles KW - Optical assay KW - qNMR KW - Surface analysis KW - Ligand KW - Quantification KW - Functional group KW - XPS KW - ToF-SIMS KW - Polymer particle KW - Surface modification KW - Potentiometry KW - Metrology KW - Method KW - Validation KW - ILC PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-63339 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Standardized Measurements of Surface Functionalities on Nanoparticles - F. Synthesis and characterization of functional nanocomposite materials N2 - Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) with various chemical compositions and surface functionalities are routinely and commonly fabricated for industrial applications such as medical diagnostics, drug delivery, sensing, catalysis, energy conversion and storage, opto-electronics, and information storage. NP function, their interaction with biological species, and also their environmental fate are largely determined by the surface functionalities of the particles. Reliable, reproducible, and standardized surface characterization methods are therefore vital for quality control of NPs, determination of their applicability, and mandatory to meet increasing concerns regarding their safety. In addition, industry as well as international standardization organizations, regulatory agencies, and policymakers need validated and standardized measurement methods and reference materials. However, methodologies for determining NP surface properties, including the amount, chemical composition, and homogeneity of surface functionalities and coatings are largely non-standardized up until now. Suitable methods for determining surface functionalities on ligand-stabilized core and core/shell NPs include advanced techniques such as traceable quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR), as well as X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS) and time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), and simpler optical and electrochemical methods. The latter, typically less costly methods are often used by SMEs, e.g., for quality control. To validate methods, establish measurement uncertainties, test reference materials, and produce reference data, international interlaboratory comparisons (ILC) on NP surface functionalization measurements are required to provide well characterized test and reference nanomaterials including benchmark values.[1] These needs are addressed by the current European metrology project SMURFnano, involving 12 partners from different National Metrology Institutes, designated and research institutes, two university groups as well as one large company and one SME producing NPs. This project, as well as first results derived from the development of test and reference materials with a well characterized surface chemistry, and ongoing interlaboratory comparisons, will be presented. T2 - Shift 2025 CY - La Laguna, Tenerife DA - 13.10.2025 KW - Nano KW - Particle KW - Silica KW - Iron oxide KW - Lanthanide KW - Metrology KW - Quality assurance KW - Reference material KW - Surface chemistry KW - Size KW - Shape KW - Particle number concentration KW - Method KW - Optical assay KW - qNMR KW - Validation KW - Potentiometry KW - XPS KW - ILC KW - Standardization PY - 2025 AN - OPUS4-64370 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wilhelm, Stefan A1 - Kaiser, Martin A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Heiland, J. A1 - Carrillo-Carrion, C. A1 - Muhr, V. A1 - Wolfbeis, Otto S. A1 - Parak, W.J. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Hirsch, T. T1 - Water dispersible upconverting nanoparticles: effects of surface modification on their luminescence and colloidal stability N2 - We present a systematic study on the effect of surface ligands on the luminescence properties and colloidal stability of β-NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), comparing nine different surface coatings to render these UCNPs water-dispersible and bioconjugatable. A prerequisite for this study was a large-scale synthetic method that yields ~2 g per batch of monodisperse oleate-capped UCNPs providing identical core particles. These ~23 nm sized UCNPs display an upconversion quantum yield of ~0.35% when dispersed in cyclohexane and excited with a power density of 150 W cm-2, underlining their high quality. A comparison of the colloidal stability and luminescence properties of these UCNPs, subsequently surface modified with ligand exchange or encapsulation protocols, revealed that the ratio of the green (545 nm) and red (658 nm) emission bands determined at a constant excitation power density clearly depends on the surface chemistry. Modifications relying on the deposition of additional (amphiphilic) layer coatings, where the initial oleate coating is retained, show reduced non-radiative quenching by water as compared to UCNPs that are rendered water-dispersible via ligand exchange. Moreover, we could demonstrate that the brightness of the upconversion luminescence of the UCNPs is strongly affected by the type of surface modification, i.e., ligand exchange or encapsulation, yet hardly by the chemical nature of the ligand. KW - upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) KW - Luminescence KW - surface modification PY - 2015 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-324071 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c4nr05954a SN - 2040-3364 SN - 2040-3372 VL - 7 IS - 4 SP - 1403 EP - 1410 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-32407 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Weigert, Florian A1 - Müller, A. A1 - Häusler, I. A1 - Geißler, Daniel A1 - Skroblin, D. A1 - Unger, Wolfgang A1 - Radnik, Jörg A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Combining HR‑TEM and XPS to elucidate the core–shell structure of ultrabright CdSe/CdS semiconductor quantum dots N2 - Controlling thickness and tightness of surface passivation shells is crucial for many applications of core–shell nanoparticles (NP). Usually, to determine shell thickness, core and core/shell particle are measured individually requiring the availability of both nanoobjects. This is often not fulfilled for functional nanomaterials such as many photoluminescent semiconductor quantum dots (QD) used for bioimaging, solid state lighting, and display technologies as the core does not show the applicationrelevant functionality like a high photoluminescence (PL) quantum yield, calling for a whole nanoobject approach. By combining high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), a novel whole nanoobject approach is developed representatively for an ultrabright oleic acid-stabilized, thick shell CdSe/CdS QD with a PL quantum yield close to unity. The size of this spectroscopically assessed QD, is in the range of the information depth of usual laboratory XPS. Information on particle size and monodispersity were validated with dynamic light scattering (DLS) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and compared to data derived from optical measurements. In addition to demonstrating the potential of this novel whole nanoobject approach for determining architectures of small nanoparticles, the presented results also highlight challenges faced by different sizing and structural analysis methods and method-inherent uncertainties. KW - Photoluminescence KW - Single particle KW - Microscopy KW - Particle architecture KW - Thickness KW - SAXS KW - Shell KW - XPS KW - TEM KW - Semiconductor KW - Quantum dot KW - Photophysics KW - Quantum yield PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-517911 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-77530-z VL - 10 IS - 1 SP - 20712 PB - Springer Nature AN - OPUS4-51791 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Radnik, Jörg A1 - Knigge, Xenia A1 - Andresen, Elina A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Cant, D.J.H. A1 - Shard, A.G. A1 - Clifford, C.A. T1 - Composition, thickness, and homogeneity of the coating of core–shell nanoparticles—possibilities, limits, and challenges of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy N2 - Core–shell nanoparticles have attracted much attention in recent years due to their unique properties and their increasing importance in many technological and consumer products. However, the chemistry of nanoparticles is still rarely investigated in comparison to their size and morphology. In this review, the possibilities, limits, and challenges of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for obtaining more insights into the composition, thickness, and homogeneity of nanoparticle coatings are discussed with four examples: CdSe/CdS quantum dots with a thick coating and a small core; NaYF4-based upconverting nanoparticles with a large Yb-doped core and a thin Er-doped coating; and two types of polymer nanoparticles with a poly(tetrafluoroethylene) core with either a poly(methyl methacrylate) or polystyrene coating. Different approaches for calculating the thickness of the coating are presented, like a simple numerical modelling or a more complex simulation of the photoelectron peaks. Additionally, modelling of the XPS background for the investigation of coating is discussed. Furthermore, the new possibilities to measure with varying excitation energies or with hard-energy X-ray sources (hard-energy X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) are described. A discussion about the sources of uncertainty for the determination of the thickness of the coating completes this review. KW - X-ray spectroscopy KW - Nanoparticles KW - Spectroscopy / Instrumentation KW - Spectroscopy / Theory PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-548305 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-022-04057-9 VL - 414 IS - 15 SP - 4331 EP - 4345 PB - SpringerNature AN - OPUS4-54830 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Meermann, Björn A1 - Koch, Matthias A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Editorial: Analytical methods and applications in materials and life sciences N2 - Current trends in materials and life sciences are flanked by the need to push detection limits to single molecules or single cells, enable the characterization of increasingly complex matrices or sophisticated nanostructures, speed up the time of analysis, reduce instrument complexity and costs, and improve the reliability of data. This requires suitable analytical tools such as spectroscopic, separation and imaging techniques, mass spectrometry, and hyphenated techniques as well as sensors and their adaptation to application-specific challenges in the environmental, food, consumer product, health sector, nanotechnology, and bioanalysis. Increasing concerns about health threatening known or emerging pollutants in drinking water, consumer products, and food and about the safety of nanomaterials led to a new awareness of the importance of analytical sciences. Another important driver in this direction is the increasing demand by legislation, particularly in view of the 17 sustainable development goals by the United Nations addressing clean energy, industry, and innovation, sustainable cities, clean water, and responsible consumption and production. In this respect, also the development of analytical methods that enable the characterization of material flows in production processes and support recycling concepts of precious raw materials becomes more and more relevant. In the future, this will provide the basis for greener production in the chemical industry utilizing recycled or sustainable starting materials. This makes analytical chemistry an essential player in terms of the circular economy helping to increase the sustainability of production processes. In the life sciences sector, products based on proteins, such as therapeutic and diagnostic antibodies, increase in importance. These increasingly biotechnologically produced functional biomolecules pose a high level of complexity of matrix and structural features that can be met only by highly advanced methods for separation, characterization, and detection. In addition, metrological traceability and target definition are still significant challenges for the future, particularly in the life sciences. However, innovative reference materials as required for the health and food sector and the characterization of advanced materials can only be developed when suitable analytical protocols are available. The so-called reproducibility crisis in sciences underlines the importance of improved measures of quality control for all kinds of measurements and material characterization. This calls for thorough method validation concepts, suitable reference materials, and regular interlaboratory comparisons of measurements as well as better training of scientists in analytical sciences. The important contribution of analytical sciences to these developments is highlighted by a broad collection of research papers, trend articles, and critical reviews from these different application fields. Special emphasis is dedicated to often-overlooked quality assurance and reference materials. T2 - 150 years BAM: Science with impact CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 01.01.2021 KW - Analysis KW - Life sciences KW - Analytical sciences KW - Quality assurance KW - Reference material KW - Fluorescence KW - Nanoparticle KW - Sensor KW - Material sciences KW - Pollutant KW - Environment KW - Method KW - Limit of detection KW - 150th anniversary KW - ABC KW - BAM KW - Collection KW - Editorial KW - Special issue KW - Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung KW - Jahrestag PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-550720 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-022-04082-8 SN - 1618-2642 SN - 1618-2650 VL - 414 IS - Topical collection: Analytical methods and applications in the materials and life sciences SP - 4267 EP - 4268 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-55072 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wegner, Karl David A1 - Häusler, I. A1 - Knigge, Xenia A1 - Hodoroaba, Vasile-Dan A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Reiss, P. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - One-Pot Heat-Up Synthesis of ZnSe Magic-Sized Clusters Using Thiol Ligands N2 - The synthesis of two new families of ZnSe magic-sized clusters (MSCs) is achieved using the thiol ligand 1-dodecanethiol in a simple one-pot heat-up approach. The sizes of the MSCs are controlled with the thiol ligand concentration and reaction temperature. KW - ZnSe KW - Magic-sized cluster KW - Dodecanethiol KW - Semiconductor nanocrystals KW - One-pot synthesis PY - 2022 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.2c00041 VL - 61 IS - 19 SP - 7207 EP - 7211 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington, DC (USA) AN - OPUS4-54880 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Radunz, Sebastian A1 - Kraus, Werner A1 - Bischoff, F. A. A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Tschiche, Harald T1 - Temperature- and Structure-Dependent Optical Properties and Photophysics of BODIPY Dyes N2 - We report on the temperature- and structural-dependent optical properties and photophysics of a set of boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes with different substitution patterns of their meso-aryl subunit. Single-crystal Xray diffraction analysis of the compounds enabled a classification of the dyes into a sterically hindered and a unhindered group. The steric hindrance refers to a blocked rotational motion of the aryl subunit around the bond connecting this moiety to the meso-position of the BODIPY core. The energy barriers related to this rotation were simulated by DFT calculations. As follows from the relatively low rotational barrier calculated to about 17 kcal/mol, a free rotation is only possible for sterically unhindered compounds. Rotational barriers of more than 40 kcal/mol determined for the sterically hindered compounds suggest an effective freezing of the rotational motion in These molecules. With the aid of temperature-dependent spectroscopic measurements, we could show that the ability to rotate directly affects the optical properties of our set of BODIPY dyes. This accounts for the strong temperature dependence of the fluorescence of the sterically unhindered compounds which show a drastic decrease in fluorescence quantum yield and a significant shortening in fluorescence lifetime upon heating. The optical properties of the sterically hindered compounds, however, are barely affected by temperature. Our results suggest a nonradiative deactivation of the first excited singlet state of the sterically unhindered compounds caused by a conical intersection of the potential energy surfaces of the Ground and first excited state which is accessible by rotation of the meso-subunit. This is in good agreement with previously reported deactivation mechanisms. In addition, our results suggest the presence of a second nonradiative depopulation pathway of the first excited singlet state which is particularly relevant for the sterically hindered compounds. KW - Fluorescence KW - Sensor KW - Switch KW - pH KW - BODIPY KW - Dye KW - Probe KW - Synthesis KW - Photophysics KW - Mechanism PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpca.9b11859 SN - 1089-5639 VL - 124 IS - 9 SP - 1787 EP - 1797 PB - American Chemical Society AN - OPUS4-50639 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - El Abbassi, Abdelouahad A1 - Krenzer, Julius A1 - Petrov, Eugene P. A1 - Biesen, Lukas A1 - Vasylyeva, Vera A1 - Merzenich, Sarah A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Müller, Thomas J. J. T1 - Aroyl-S,N-ketene acetal-triarylamine bichromophores – intramolecular energy transfer and dual emission upon induced aggregation and encapsulation N2 - Aroyl-S,N-ketene acetal-based bichromophores are synthesized by a catalytic aryl amination and their photophysics are studied in the solid state, in ethanol–water mixtures inducing aggregation, and after encapsulation in polystyrene nanoparticles. The dye substitution pattern controls aggregation-induced emission and intramolecular energy transfer efficiency, resulting in single-band or dual fluorescence and a strong increase in fluorescence quantum yield upon particle encapsulation. KW - Fluorescence KW - Dye KW - Aggregation KW - Photophysics KW - Enhancement KW - White light emission KW - Energy transfer KW - Quantum yield PY - 2026 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-656700 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/d5ra09361a SN - 2046-2069 VL - 16 IS - 11 SP - 10255 EP - 10260 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) AN - OPUS4-65670 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Busch, C. A1 - Schröter, T. A1 - Grabolle, Markus A1 - Wenzel, M. A1 - Kempe, H. A1 - Kaiser, W.A. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Hilger, I. T1 - An in vivo spectral multiplexing approach for the cooperative imaging of different disease-related biomarkers with near-infrared fluorescent Förster resonance energy transfer probes N2 - In recent years, much progress has been made in analyzing the molecular origin of many diseases in vivo. For most applications, attention has been devoted to the detection of single molecules only. In this study, we present a proof of concept for the straightforward monitoring of interactions between different molecules via Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) in an in vivo spectral multiplexing approach using conventional small organic dyes covalently attached to antibodies. Methods: We coupled the fluorophores DY-682 (donor; absorption [abs]/emission [em], 674/712 nm), DY-505 (control donor; abs/em, 498/529 nm), and DY-782 (acceptor; abs/em, 752/795 nm) to the model antibody IgG. The occurrence of FRET between these fluorophores was assessed in vitro for conjugate mixtures adsorbed onto membranes, after accumulation into the phagocytic compartment of macrophages (J774 cells), and in vivo in a mouse edema model using a whole-body animal imaging system with multispectral analysis features. Results: When the free acceptor DY-782 was combined with the DY-682 donor, FRET occurred as a consequence of small dye-to-dye distances, unlike the case for mixtures of the dyes DY-782 and DY-505. Our proof of concept was also transferred to living cells after internalization of the DY-682-IgG–DY-782-IgG pair into macrophages and finally to animals, where intermolecular FRET was observed after systemic probe application in vivo in edema-bearing mice. Conclusion: Our simple cooperative-imaging approach enables the noninvasive detection of the presence of two or principally even more neighboring disease-related biomarkers. This finding is of high relevance for the in vivo identification of complex biologic processes requiring strong spatial interrelations of target molecules in key pathologic activation processes such as inflammation, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases. KW - FRET KW - IgG antibodies KW - In vivo molecular imaging KW - Near-infrared (NIR) fluorophores KW - Multiplexing KW - Cooperative signaling PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.2967/jnumed.111.094391 SN - 0161-5505 SN - 0097-9058 SN - 0022-3123 SN - 1535-5667 VL - 53 IS - 4 SP - 638 EP - 646 PB - SNM CY - Reston, Va. AN - OPUS4-26069 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Grandke, Julia A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Bremser, Wolfram A1 - Garbe, L.-A. A1 - Schneider, Rudolf T1 - Quality assurance in immunoassay performance-temperature effects N2 - Temperature is one factor that influences the performance of immunoassays. Most commonly all incubation steps of the immunoassay are performed at ambient temperature. To systematically study the influence of temperature deviations on assay parameters like signal variation coefficients, limit of detection and measurement range, direct competitive enzyme immunoassays for the determination of two anthropogenic markers, caffeine and carbamazepine, were run at different temperatures above and below room temperature during individual assay steps. The temperature during the competition step had the greatest impact on the assay sensitivity yielding changes in test midpoints by a factor of 10 to 15. For carbamazepine, the test midpoints varied from 36 ng L-1, 108 ng L-1 to 378 ng L-1 employing 4 °C, 21 °C, or 37 °C as incubation temperature, respectively. The edge effect can be minimized resulting in a good plate homogeneity with small variation coefficients, when the assay is performed at ambient temperature. KW - Immunoassay KW - Temperature effects PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c2ay05918e SN - 1759-9660 SN - 1759-9679 IS - 4 SP - 901 EP - 905 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-25740 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Grabolle, Markus A1 - Brehm, Robert A1 - Pauli, Jutta A1 - Dees, F.M. A1 - Hilger, I. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Determination of the labeling density of fluorophore-biomolecule conjugates with absorption spectroscopy N2 - Dye–biomolecule conjugation is frequently accompanied by considerable spectral changes of the dye’s absorption spectrum that limit the use of the common photometrical method for the determination of labeling densities. Here, we describe an improvement of this method using the integral absorbance of the dye instead of its absorbance at the long wavelength maximum to determine the concentration of the biomolecule-coupled dye. This approach is illustrated for three different cyanine dyes conjugated to the antibody IgG. KW - Fluorescent dye KW - Aggregation KW - Dimerization KW - Fluorophore-labeled antibodies KW - Labeling density KW - Dye-to-protein ratio KW - Absorption PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/bc2003428 SN - 1043-1802 SN - 1520-4812 VL - 23 IS - 2 SP - 287 EP - 292 CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-25527 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fleige, E. A1 - Ziem, B. A1 - Grabolle, Markus A1 - Haag, R. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Aggregation phenomena of host and guest upon the loading of dendritic core-multishell nanoparticles with solvatochromic dyes N2 - We systematically assessed the loading behavior of core-multishell nanoparticles (CMS NPs) for the solvatochromic dyes Coumarin 153 and Nile Red and studied the influence of the guest and its concentration on CMS NP aggregation using steady state absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering (DLS). These measurements revealed the strong fluorescence of dye-loaded CMS NPs and formation of nonemissive dye aggregates in the outer CMS layer at higher loading concentrations of Nile Red, whereas in the case of Coumarin 153, a new species with red-shifted absorption and blue-shifted emission appeared. Moreover, dye loading triggers an aggregation of CMS NPs which have a hydrodynamic radius of 8 nm, thereby leading to CMS aggregates with a radius of 100–120 nm. These results underline the need for systematic studies of the influence of the guest and its loading concentration on CMS NP size for cellular uptake and in vivo imaging studies and the rational design of CMS NPs with improved transport and targeting abilities. PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/ma301977r SN - 0024-9297 SN - 1520-5835 VL - 45 IS - 23 SP - 9452 EP - 9459 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-27592 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Bricks, J. L. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Kraus, Werner A1 - Schulz, Burkhard A1 - Li, Yanqin A1 - Reck, Günter T1 - Influence of the donor substituent and acceptor alkylation on the structure-analytical properties of mono- and bifunctional biphenyl-type fluorescent reporters N2 - A systematic structural investigation of R-phenyl-substituted 2,2':6',2"-terpyridines, a family of mono- and bifunctional charge transfer (CT)-operated fluorescent reporters for protons and metal ions, is presented. These molecules are equipped with non-binding and analyte coordinating donor substituents R (R = CF3, H, OMe, OH, DMA, A15C5 equaling monoaza-15-crown-5) of various donor strength and display CT-controlled spectroscopic properties and communication of analyte–receptor interactions. The crystal structures of the neutral fluorescent probes are compared to the structures of their terpyridine-alkylated or -protonated counterparts that represent model systems for acceptor protonation or cation coordination. The aim is here a better understanding of the complexation-induced structural and spectroscopic changes and the identification of common packing motifs of bpb-R thereby taking into account the importance of terpyridine building blocks for the construction of supramolecular systems and coordination arrays revealing π–π interactions. KW - Biphenyl KW - Terpyridine KW - Crystal structure KW - Fluorescent probe KW - Charge transfer KW - Bifunctional PY - 2008 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molstruc.2007.03.025 SN - 0022-2860 SN - 1872-8014 SN - 0377-046X VL - 874 IS - 1-3 SP - 14 EP - 27 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-17087 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Laux, Eva-Maria A1 - Behnke, Thomas A1 - Hoffmann, Katrin A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Keeping particles brilliant - simple methods for the determination of the dye content of fluorophore-loaded polymeric particles N2 - One of the most active research areas in the life and material sciences is the design and synthesis of fluorescent nano- and micrometre sized particles for applications e.g. as labels, sensor systems, and platforms for fluorescence assays or barcoding materials. The reliable and reproducible fabrication of such particles as well as many applications require accurate, simple, and versatile procedures for the determination of the dye content per particle which affects e.g. the brightness of these materials and their surface charge and thus, colloidal stability. Here, four fast and inexpensive spectroscopic methods for the quantification of the fluorophore content of beads are presented and compared for nanometre- and micrometre sized polystyrene particles loaded or labeled with commercial fluorophores, differing in dye class, charge, and hydrophilicity. This included the determination of the amount of incorporated dye from absorption spectra of bead suspensions, via dissolving of the polymer matrix, via extraction of the polymer matrix, and from the supernatant of the swelling solution or reaction mixture. Method validation was performed with a sulfur-containing dye and elemental analysis. Based upon this method comparison and the accomplishable uncertainties, two reliable strategies for particle characterization and bead process control are identified that can be easily extended to other materials. PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c2ay05822g SN - 1759-9660 SN - 1759-9679 VL - 4 IS - 6 SP - 1759 EP - 1768 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-26051 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Linck, Lena A1 - Kapusta, P. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Spectroscopic and photophysical properties of dUTP and internally DNA bound fluorophores for optimized signal detection in biological formats N2 - Efficient signal generation in DNA-based assays requires understanding of the influence of fluorophore’s interactions on the spectroscopic properties. The resulting changes in fluorescence intensity, quantum yield, emission anisotropy, and fluorescence lifetime provide straightforward tools for the study of molecular dynamics and interaction between labels and nucleic acids. Searching for bright fluorescent reporters for rolling circle amplification (RCA) as efficient signal enhancement strategy for biological formats, we investigated the spectroscopic properties of seven dyes: cyanines, rhodamines, and BODIPYs. They spectrally resemble Cy3, the most frequently used fluorophore in biodetection formats, and are measured in six samples (free dye, dye-dUTP, internally labeled ssDNA and dsDNA—single- and triple-labeled) using steady-state and time-resolved fluorometry. Special emphasis was dedicated to characterizing the nature of the interaction of these fluorophores differing in dye class, charge, and rigidity. Our results suggest dye charge and structure as main factors governing the dye’s interactions, with DY-555 and Cy3B presenting the best candidates for our envisaged signal amplification strategy. This label comparison underlines the importance of a proper understanding of structure-property relations and dye–biomolecule interactions for reporter choice and presents a road map towards the design and interpretation of experiments using these labels on DNA of known sequence. KW - DNA KW - Fluorescent dye KW - Fluorescence quantum yield KW - Cyanine KW - Rhodamine KW - Fluorescence lifetime KW - Guanosine quenching PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-1097.2012.01119.x SN - 0031-8655 SN - 1751-1097 VL - 88 IS - 4 SP - 867 EP - 875 PB - American Society for Photobiology CY - Augusta, Ga. AN - OPUS4-27080 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Linck, Lena A1 - Reiß, E. A1 - Bier, F. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Direct labeling rolling circle amplification as a straightforward signal amplification technique for biodetection formats N2 - Biodetection formats, such as DNA and antibody microarrays, are valuable tools in the life sciences, but for some applications, the detection limits are insufficient. A straightforward strategy to obtain signal amplification is the rolling circle amplification (RCA), an easy, isothermal, and enzymatic nucleic acid synthesis that has already been employed successfully to increase the signal yield for several single-analyte and multiplexing assays in conjunction with hybridization probes. Here, we systematically investigated the parameters responsible for the RCA driven signal amplification with fluorescent labels, such as the type of fluorophore chosen, labeling strategy, composition of reaction solution, and number of handling steps. In labeling strategies, post-synthetic labeling via a Cy3-hybridization probe was compared to the direct incorporation of fluorescent Cy3–dUTP and DY-555–dUTP into the nascent strand during synthesis. With our direct labeling protocol, the assay's runtime and handling steps could be reduced while the signal yield was increased. These features are very attractive for many detection formats but especially for point-of-care diagnostic kits that need to be simple enough to be performed by scientifically untrained personnel. KW - Method KW - Label KW - Fluorescence KW - RCA KW - Amplification KW - Oligonucleotide KW - DNA KW - Assay KW - Fluorophore KW - Dye content KW - Surface PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c2ay05760c SN - 1759-9660 SN - 1759-9679 VL - 4 IS - 5 SP - 1215 EP - 1220 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-25839 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Grunert, B. A1 - Saatz, Jessica A1 - Hoffmann, Katrin A1 - Appler, F. A1 - Lubjuhn, Dominik A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Briel, A. T1 - Multifunctional rare-earth element nanocrystals for cell labeling and multimodal imaging N2 - In this work, we describe a simple solvothermal route for the synthesis of Eu3+-doped gadolinium orthovanadate nanocrystals (Eu:GdVO4−PAA) functionalized with poly(acrylic)acid (PAA), that are applicable as cell labeling probes for multimodal cellular imaging. The Eu3+ doping of the vanadate matrix provides optical functionality, due to red photoluminescence after illumination with UV light. The Gd3+ ions of the nanocrystals reduce the T1 relaxation time of surrounding water protons, allowing these nanocrystals to act as a positive MRI contrast agent with a r1 relaxivity of 1.97 mM−1 s−1. Low background levels of Eu3+, Gd3+, and V5+ in biological systems make them an excellent label for elemental microscopy by Laser Ablation (LA)-ICP-MS. Synthesis resulted in polycrystalline nanocrystals with a hydrodynamic diameter of 55 nm and a crystal size of 36.7 nm, which were further characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The multifunctional nanocrystals were subsequently used for intracellular labeling of both human adipose-derived stem cells (MSCs) and A549 (adenocarcinomic human alveolar basal epithelial) cells. KW - Bioimaging KW - Nanoparticle KW - Multimodal KW - Lanthanide PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b00495 SN - 2373-9878 VL - 4 IS - 10 SP - 3578 EP - 3587 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington, USA AN - OPUS4-46244 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hoffmann, Katrin A1 - Dietzel, B. A1 - Schulz, B. A1 - Reck, Günter A1 - Hoffmann, Angelika A1 - Orgzall, I. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Emmerling, Franziska T1 - Combined structural and fluorescence studies of methyl-substituted 2,5-diphenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazoles - relation between electronic properties and packing motifs N2 - Prerequisite for the rational design of functional organic materials with tailor-made electronic properties is the knowledge of the structure–property relationship for the specific class of molecules under consideration. This encouraged us to systematically study the influence of the molecular structure and substitution pattern of aromatically substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazoles on the electronic properties and packing motifs of these molecules and on the interplay of these factors. For this purpose, seven diphenyl-oxadiazoles equipped with methyl substituents in the ortho- and meta-position(s) were synthesized and characterized. Absorption and fluorescence spectra in solution served here as tools to monitor substitution-induced changes in the electronic properties of the individual molecules whereas X-ray and optical measurements in the solid state provided information on the interplay of electronic and packing effects. In solution, the spectral position of the absorption maximum, the size of Stokes shift, and the fluorescence quantum yield are considerably affected by ortho-substitution in three or four ortho-positions. This results in blue shifted absorption bands, increased Stokes shifts, and reduced fluorescence quantum yields whereas the spectral position and vibrational structure of the emission bands remain more or less unaffected. In the crystalline state, however, the spectral position and shape of the emission bands display a strong dependence on the molecular structure and/or packing motifs that seem to control the amount of dye–dye-interactions. These observations reveal the limited value of commonly reported absorption and fluorescence measurements in solution for a straightforward comparison of spectroscopic results with single X-ray crystallography. This underlines the importance of solid state spectroscopic studies for a better understanding of the interplay of electronic effects and molecular order. KW - Diphenyl-oxadiazoles KW - X-ray structure KW - Packing motif KW - Optical properties KW - Fluorescence quantum yield PY - 2011 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molstruc.2010.11.071 SN - 0022-2860 SN - 1872-8014 SN - 0377-046X VL - 988 IS - 1-3 SP - 35 EP - 46 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-23253 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Moser, Marko A1 - Schneider, Ralf A1 - Behnke, Thomas A1 - Schneider, Thomas A1 - Falkenhagen, Jana A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Ellman’s and aldrithiol assay as versatile and complementary tools for the quantification of thiol groups and ligands on nanomaterials N2 - Simple, fast, and versatile methods for the quantification of thiol groups are of considerable interest not only for protein analysis but also for the characterization of the surface chemistry of nanomaterials stabilized with thiol ligands or bearing thiol groups for the subsequent (bio-) functionalization via maleimide−thiol chemistry. Here, we compare two simple colorimetric assays, the widely used Ellman’s assay performed at alkaline pH and the aldrithiol assay executed at acidic and neutral pH, with respect to their potential for the quantification of thiol groups and thiol ligands on different types of nanoparticles like polystyrene nanoparticles, semiconductor nanocrystals (SC NC), and noble metal particles, and we derive criteria for their use. In order to assess the underlying reaction mechanisms and to obtain stoichiometry factors mandatory for reliable thiol quantification, both methods were studied photometrically and with electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-TOF-MS), thereby demonstrating the influence of different thiols on the reaction mechanism. Our results underline the suitability of both methods for the quantification of directly accessible thiol groups or ligands on the surface of 2D- and 3D-supports, here exemplarily polystyrene nanoparticles. Moreover, we could derive strategies for the use of these simple assays for the determination of masked (i.e., not directly accessible) thiol groups like disulfides such as lipoic acid and thiol stabilizing ligands coordinatively bound to Cd and/or Hg surface atoms of II/VI and ternary SC NC and to gold and silver nanoparticles. KW - Nanoparticles KW - Ligands KW - Ellman KW - Aldrithiol KW - Quantification PY - 2016 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.6b01798 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 88 IS - 17 SP - 8624 EP - 8631 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington AN - OPUS4-37561 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - You, Zengchao A1 - Nirmalananthan-Budau, Nithiya A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Panne, Ulrich A1 - Weidner, Steffen T1 - Separation of polystyrene nanoparticles bearing different carboxyl group densities and functional groups quantification with capillary electrophoresis and asymmetrical flow field flow fractionation N2 - Two sets of polystyrene nanoparticles (PSNPs) with comparable core sizes but different carboxyl group densities were made and separated using asymmetric flow field flow fractionation (AF4), capillary electrophoresis (CE), and the off-line hyphenation of both methods. Our results revealed the significant potential of two-dimensional off-line AF4-CE hyphenation to improve the separation and demonstrated for the first time, the applicability of CE to determine the functional group density of nanoparticles (NPs). Compared to the result acquired with conductometric titration, the result obtained with synthesized 100 nm sized PSNPs revealed only a slight deviation of 1.7%. Commercial 100 nm sized PSNPs yielded a deviation of 4.6 %. For 60 nm sized PSNPs, a larger deviation of 10.6 % between both methods was observed, which is attributed to the lower separation resolution. KW - Nanoparticle KW - A4F KW - Capillary electrophoresis KW - Carboxyl group PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2020.461392 VL - 1626 SP - 461392 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-51080 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Scholz, Philipp A1 - Wachtendorf, Volker A1 - Elert, Anna Maria A1 - Falkenhagen, Jana A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Hoffmann, Katrin A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Tschiche, Harald A1 - Reinsch, Stefan A1 - Weidner, Steffen ED - Scholz, Philipp T1 - Analytical toolset to characterize polyurethanes after exposure to artificial weathering under systematically varied moisture conditions N2 - Polyether and -ester urethanes (PU) were exposed to artificial weathering at 40 °C and artificial UV radiation in a weathering chamber. In 3 parallel exposures, humidity was varied between dry, humid, and wet conditions. Material alteration was investigated by various analytical techniques like size exclusion chromatography (SEC), liquid chromatography-infrared spectroscopy (LC-FTIR), thermal-desorption gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS), fluorescence mapping and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Our results show that depending on the weathering conditions, different degradation effects can be observed. By means of SEC an initial strong decrease of the molar masses and a broadening of the mass distributions was found. After a material dependent time span this was followed by a plateau where molar mass changes were less significant. A minor moisture-dependent degradation effect was only found for polyester PU. Fluorescence measurements on two materials revealed an increase in the luminescence intensity upon weathering process reaching a saturation level after about 500 h. The changes in the optical properties observed after different exposure conditions and times were very similar. The TD-GC-MS data showed the fate of the stabilizers and antioxidant in the course of weathering. LC-FTIR measurements revealed a change in peak intensities and the ratio of urethane and carbonyl bands. KW - Polyurethane KW - Artificial weathering KW - Moisture KW - Crosslinking KW - Degradation PY - 2019 UR - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0142941819303708 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polymertesting.2019.105996 SN - 0142-9418 VL - 78 SP - 105996, 1 EP - 9 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-48625 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Moser, Marko A1 - Behnke, Thomas A1 - Hamers-Allin, Carolina A1 - Klein-Hartwig, Karin A1 - Falkenhagen, Jana A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Quantification of PEG-maleimide ligands and coupling efficiencies on nanoparticles with Ellman's reagent N2 - The surface modification of nanometer- and micrometer-sized particles and planar substrates with polyethylene glycol (PEG) ligands of varying length is a very common strategy to tune the hydrophilicity and biocompatibility of such materials, minimize unspecific interactions, improve biofunctionalization efficiencies, and enhance blood circulation times. Nevertheless, simple methods for the quantification of PEG ligands are comparatively rare. Here, we present a new concept for the quantification of PEG ligands for maleimide-functionalized PEG molecules and the determination of PEG coupling efficiencies, exploiting the quantitative reaction of maleimide with ʟ-cysteine, and the subsequent determination of the unreacted thiol with the photometric Ellman's test. This is shown for heterobifunctional PEG spacers of varying length and amino-functionalized polystyrene nanoparticles (PS NP) without and with differently charged encoding dyes. The reaction of ʟ-cysteine with the Ellman's reagent was monitored photometrically and with electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-TOF-MS) to derive the reaction mechanism and to obtain the stoichiometry factor for ʟ-cysteine quantification. Mass balances and quantification of ʟ-cysteine via its sulfur concentration using elemental analysis and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) confirmed the accuracy and reliability of this approach that can be extended to other surface groups and ligands. KW - Photometric assay KW - Surface analysis KW - Nanoparticle KW - Polyethylene glycol KW - PEG quantification KW - Ellman's test PY - 2015 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.5b02173 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 87 IS - 18 SP - 9376 EP - 9383 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-34468 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hennig, Andreas A1 - Borcherding, H. A1 - Jäger, Christian A1 - Hatami, Soheil A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Hoffmann, Angelika A1 - Hoffmann, Katrin A1 - Thiele, T. A1 - Schedler, U. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Scope and limitations of surface functional quantification methods: exploratory study with poly(acrylic acid)-grafted micro- and nanoparticles N2 - The amount of grafted poly(acrylic acid) on poly(methyl methacrylate) micro- and nanoparticles was quantified by conductometry, 13C solid-state NMR, fluorophore labeling, a supramolecular assay based on high-affinity binding of cucurbit[7]uril, and two colorimetric assays based on toluidine blue and nickel complexation by pyrocatechol violet. The methods were thoroughly validated and compared with respect to reproducibility, sensitivity, and ease of use. The results demonstrate that only a small but constant fraction of the surface functional groups is accessible to covalent surface derivatization independently of the total number of surface functional groups, and different contributing factors are discussed that determine the number of probe molecules which can be bound to the polymer surface. The fluorophore labeling approach was modified to exclude artifacts due to fluorescence quenching, but absolute quantum yield measurements still indicate a major uncertainty in routine fluorescence-based surface group quantifications, which is directly relevant for biochemical assays and medical diagnostics. Comparison with results from protein labeling with streptavidin suggests a porous network of poly(acrylic acid) chains on the particle surface, which allows diffusion of small molecules (cutoff between 1.6 and 6.5 nm) into the network. KW - Polymers KW - Surface groups KW - Quantification KW - Fluorescence PY - 2012 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/ja302649g SN - 0002-7863 SN - 1520-5126 VL - 134 IS - 19 SP - 8268 EP - 8276 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-26002 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Simple method for the quantification of PEG ligands and guidelines to the spectroscopic characterization of upconversion nanoparticles N2 - The surface modification of nanometer- and micrometer-sized particles with polyethylene glycol (PEG) ligands of varying length is a very common strategy to tune their hydrophilicity and biocompatibility, minimize unspecific interactions, improve biofunctionalization efficiencies, and enhance blood circulation times. Nevertheless, simple methods for the quantification of PEG ligands are rare. This is similarly true for the spectroscopic characterization of lanthanide-doped upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs), novel near infrared (NIR)-excitable nonlinear fluorescence reporters for bioanalysis and theranostics, providing background-free multiple narrow emission bands in the visible and NIR, excellent photostability, and long luminescence lifetimes. We present here a simple method for the determination of the number of PEG ligands on nanomaterials and screening methods for the fast identification of nonradiative deaction pathways in UCNPs. T2 - SPIE Photonics West CY - San Francisco, CA, USA DA - 15.02.2016 KW - Optical assay KW - Fluorescence KW - Integrating sphere spectroscopy KW - Quantum yield KW - NIR KW - IR KW - Optical spectroscopy KW - Nanomaterials KW - Semiconducor nanocrystals KW - Upconversion nanocrystals KW - Surface analysis; KW - Ligand analysis PY - 2016 AN - OPUS4-35951 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -