Nicolas Trcera

Experimental evidence of thermal fluctuations on the X-ray absorption near-edge structure at the aluminum K-edge

After a review of temperature-dependent experimental x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and related theoretical developments, we present the Al K-edge XANES spectra of corundum and beryl for temperature ranging from 300K to 930K. These experimental results provide a first evidence of the role of thermal fluctuation in XANES at the Al K-edge especially in the pre-edge region. The study is carried out by polarized XANES measurements of single crystals. For any orientation of the sample with respect to the x-ray beam, the pre-edge peak grows and shifts to lower energy with temperature. In addition temperature induces modifications in the position and intensities of the main XANES features. First-principles DFT calculations are performed for both compounds. They show that the pre-edge peak originates from forbidden 1s to 3s transitions induced by vibrations. Three existing theoretical models are used to take vibrations into account in the absorption cross section calculations: i) an average of the XANES spectra over the thermal displacements of the absorbing atom around its equilibrium position, ii) a method based on the crude Born-Oppenheimer approximation where only the initial state is averaged over thermal displacements, iii) a convolution of the spectra obtained for the atoms at the equilibrium positions with an approximate phonon spectral function. The theoretical spectra so obtained permit to qualitatively understand the origin of the spectral modifications induced by temperature. However the correct treatment of thermal fluctuation in XANES spectroscopy requires more sophisticated theoretical tools.

In Situ Chemical Composition Analysis of Cirrhosis by Combining Synchrotron Fourier Transform Infrared and Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence Microspectroscopies on the Same Tissue Section

Liver is subject to various chronic pathologies, progressively leading to cirrhosis, which is associated with an increased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma. There is an urgent need for diagnostic and prognostic markers of chronic liver diseases and liver cancer. Spectroscopy-based approaches can provide an overview of the chemical composition of a tissue sample offering the possibility of investigating in depth the subtle chemical changes associated with pathological states. In this study, we have addressed the composition of cirrhotic liver tissue by combining synchrotron Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy and synchrotron micro-X-ray fluorescence (XRF) on the same tissue section using a single sample holder in copper. This allowed investigation of the in situ biochemical as well as elemental composition of cells and tissues at high spatial resolution. Cirrhosis is characterized by regeneration nodules surrounded by annular fibrosis. Hepatocytes within cirrhotic nodules were characterized by high content in esters and sugars as well as in phosphorus and iron compared with fibrotic septa. A high heterogeneity was observed between cirrhotic nodules in their content in sugars and iron. On fibrosis, synchrotron XRF revealed enrichment in calcium compared to cirrhotic hepatocytes. Careful scrutiny of tissue sections led to detection of the presence of microcrystals that were demonstrated as precipitates of calcite using synchrotron FTIR. These results demonstrated that synchrotron FTIR and synchrotron XRF microspectroscopies provide complementary information on the chemical composition of cirrhotic hepatocytes and fibrotic septa in cirrhosis.

Contribution of molecular dynamics simulations and ab initio calculations to the interpretation of Mg K-edge experimental XANES in K2O―MgO―3SiO2 glass

The structural environment of Mg in a K-bearing silicate glass of composition K(2)MgSi(3)O(8) is investigated by x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy at the Mg K-edge. XANES calculations are performed using a plane-wave electronic structure code, and a structural model obtained by classical molecular dynamics coupled to ab initio relaxation. Bond valence theory is used to validate plausible environments within the structural models. Comparison between the experimental and calculated spectra enables us to conclude that the Mg atoms are located in distorted tetrahedral sites. Site distortions are found to be correlated to the theoretical shift of the XANES edge position.

Phonon effects on x-ray absorption and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopies

In material sciences, spectroscopic approaches combining ab initio calculations with experiments are commonly used to accurately analyze the experimental spectral data. Most state-of-the-art first-principles calculations are usually performed assuming an equilibrium static lattice. Yet, nuclear motion affects spectra even when reduced to the zero-point motion at 0 K.We propose a framework based on density-functional theory that includes quantum thermal fluctuations in theoretical x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies and allows to well describe temperature effects observed experimentally. Within the Born-Oppenheimer and quasiharmonic approximations, we incorporate the nuclear motion by generating several nonequilibrium configurations from the dynamical matrix. The averaged calculated XANES and NMR spectral data have been compared to experiments in MgO. The good agreement obtained between experiments and calculations validates the developed approach, which suggests that calculating the XANES spectra at finite temperature by averaging individual nonequilibrium configurations is a suitable approximation. This study highlights the relevance of phonon renormalization and the relative contributions of thermal expansion and nuclear dynamics on NMR and XANES spectra on a wide range of temperatures.

Browning phenomenon of medieval stained glass windows.

In this work, three pieces of historical on-site glass windows dated from the 13th to 16th century and one archeological sample (8th century) showing Mn-rich brown spots at their surface or subsurface have been characterized by optical microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The oxidation state of Mn as well as the Mn environment in the alteration phase have been characterized by X-ray absorption spectroscopy at the Mn K-edge. Results show that the oxidation state of Mn and therefore the nature of the alteration phase varies according to the sample considered and is correlated with the extent of the brown alteration. The larger the brown areas the more oxidized the Mn. However, by contrast with literature, the samples presenting the more extended brown areas are not similar to pyrolusite and contain Mn mainly under a (+III) oxidation state.

Mg K‐Edge XANES Spectra in Crystals and Oxide Glasses: Experimental vs. Theoretical Approaches

Experimental Mg K‐edge XANES spectra were obtained for crystals and synthetic glasses. To interpret the experiments, two different ab initio XANES calculation methods were employed. The first one is based on multiple‐scattering calculations and muffin‐tin potentials (FEFF package). The second uses a plane‐wave basis set, norm‐conserving pseudo‐potentials, periodic boundary conditions. The resulting calculations for reference models with three different Mg coordinations are used to derive the best way to analyze the experimental XANES spectra for the glasses.

Surface and Epitaxial Stresses on Supported Metal Clusters

Surface stress and energy are basic quantities in the Gibbsian formulation of the thermodynamic description of surfaces which is central in the formation and long-term behavior of materials at the nanoscale. However, their size dependence is a puzzling issue. It is even unclear whether they decrease or increase with decreasing particle size. In addition, for a given metal, estimates often span over an order of magnitude, far apart from bulk data, which, in the absence of any explicit size-dependence rule, escapes understanding. Here, we combine X-ray absorption and nanoplasmonics data with atomistic simulation to describe α-Al2O3(0001)-supported silver particles. By comparison to MgO(001)-supported and embedded silver, we distinguish epitaxial and surface stress. The latter is shown to dominate above 3 nm in size. Since the observation mostly relies on surface/bulk ratio, a metal-independent picture emerges that is expected to have far-reaching consequences for the understanding of the energetics of nanoparticles.

Comment on “Femtosecond laser-induced modification of potassium-magnesium silicate glasses: An analysis of structural changes by near edge x-ray absorption spectroscopy” [Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 224101 (2012)]

potassium-magnesium silicate glasses: An analysis of structural changes by near edge x-ray absorption spectroscopy” [Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 224101 (2012)] Delphine Cabaret, St! ephanie Rossano, and Nicolas Trcera Institut de Min! eralogie et de Physique des Milieux Condens! es, Universit! e Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC), UMR CNRS 7590, c. c. 115, 4 Place Jussieu, 75252 Paris Cedex 05, France Laboratoire G! eomat! eriaux et Environnement, Universit! e Paris EST, EA 4508, 5 Bd Descartes, Champs sur Marne, 77454 Noisy-Champs Cedex 2, France Synchrotron SOLEIL, BP 48, 91192 Gif sur Yvette, France