Nano-SIMS for soil science - exploring elemental distribution, formation and properties of submicron sized particles in soils

我们申请了一台用于土壤生物地球化学性质分析的NanoSIMS 50L离子微探针仪。新型的NanoSIMS 50L微探针技术具有高灵敏度和高分辨率同时分析多达七种离子的特点，使其成为分析土壤生物地球化学过程和性质的前所未有的工具，从而将提高我们在亚微米尺度上定位土壤结构成分中元素/同位素联系的能力，特别是与成熟的标记技术相结合。因此，NanoSIMS将有助于解开土壤中亚微米级有机矿物组合的异质组成和三维结构。我们的研究将首先集中于有机矿物组合中C、N、Si和Fe的空间分布的同时分析，第二步将应用于标记研究：这种独特的组合为探索土壤的C和N循环提供了最有前途的方法之一，其分辨率是以前不可能的。NanoSIMS技术为亚微米尺度的多元素和同位素组合测量引入了新的标度，从而使对土壤形成的理解向前迈进了一大步，对我们关于土壤C和N循环、土壤结构稳定性和土壤界面吸附特性的概念具有重要意义。

We apply for a NanoSIMS 50L ion microprobe instrument for the analysis of soil biogeochemical properties. The specific features of the novel NanoSIMS 50L microprobe technology with the simultaneous analysis of up to seven ion species with high sensitivity and resolution make it an unprecedented tool for the analysis of biogeochemical processes and properties of soils and thereby will boost our ability to locate the association of elements/isotopes in soil structural components at the submicron scale, especially in combination with well-established labelling techniques. NanoSIMS will thus help to unravel the heterogeneous composition and three-dimensional architecture of submicron sized organo-mineral associations in soils. Our research will first focus on the simultaneous analysis of the spatial distribution of C, N, Si and Fe in organo-mineral associations and in a second step be applied to labelling studies: This unique combination provides one of the most promising approaches for exploring the C and N cycle of soils at a resolution not possible before. The NanoSIMS technique introduces new scales to combined multielement and isotope measurements at the submicron scale and thus will allow a major step forward in the understanding of soil formation, with significant implications for our concepts of the soil C and N cycle, soil structural stability, and the sorptive properties of the soil interface.