Terahertz Spectroscopy of Aqueous Systems
Summary
Terahertz spectroscopy exploits electromagnetic radiation in the 0.1–10 THz range to probe the collective motions, hydrogen‐bond dynamics and dielectric properties of water and water‐based systems. Owing to its sensitivity to low-frequency intermolecular modes, it affords unique insight into the structure and dynamics of hydrogen‐bond networks, solvation shells around biomolecules and concentration‐dependent phenomena in liquid mixtures. The principal challenge is the strong absorption of THz radiation by water, which necessitates specialised sample geometries, such as attenuated total reflection or microfluidic confinement, and advanced signal-processing techniques to recover meaningful spectra. Technological advances in time-domain spectroscopy, coupled with miniaturised platforms, have extended the applicability of THz methods to biological fluids, enabling studies of proteins, nucleic acids and other biomolecules under near-physiological conditions. The global significance of these developments spans from fundamental biophysics to potential clinical diagnostics and process monitoring in industrial and environmental contexts.
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Terahertz Spectroscopy of Aqueous Systems publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in terahertz spectroscopy of aqueous systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Terahertz spectroscopy: Technique using electromagnetic waves in the 0.1–10 THz region to probe low-frequency molecular and intermolecular motions.
Time-domain spectroscopy (TDS): Method that records the electric-field waveform of a short THz pulse over time, yielding both amplitude and phase spectra upon Fourier transformation.
Attenuated total reflection (ATR): Surface-sensitive configuration where an evanescent THz field formed at a prism–sample interface interrogates thin liquid layers.
Dielectric response: Frequency-dependent behaviour of a material’s complex permittivity, reflecting how it polarises and dissipates energy under an oscillating field.
Microfluidic chip: Miniaturised platform with micron-scale channels that confines small volumes of liquid, reducing path length and enabling THz transmission or reflection measurements of aqueous samples.
References
- Dielectric Response of Different Alcohols in Water-Rich Binary Mixtures from THz Ellipsometry. International Journal of Molecular Sciences (2024).
- Terahertz time-domain attenuated total reflection spectroscopy integrated with a microfluidic chip. Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology (2023).
- THz Detection of Biomolecules in Aqueous Environments—Status and Perspectives for Analysis Under Physiological Conditions and Clinical use. Journal of Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves (2021).
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