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My research utilizes scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy coupled with nanoscale Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy to investigate the chemical and mineralogical complexity of extraterrestrial materials. By resolving infrared spectral variations at ~20-nanometer spatial scales, this work reveals organic matter content and their associations with minerals, alteration products, nanoscale mineral heterogeneity that cannot be resolved using conventional infrared spectroscopy.
I study meteorites from a wide range of classes and groups, and samples returned from carbonaceous asteroids such as Ryugu and Bennu samples, with particular emphasis on the distribution and preservation of organic matter, the mineralogical effects of aqueous alteration, and the chemical environments recorded by these primitive Solar System materials.
Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and hyperspectral infrared imaging provide spatially resolved information about the molecular composition and mineralogy of extraterrestrial materials at the micrometer scale. By measuring diagnostic vibrational absorption bands, micro-FTIR spectroscopy can identify and map silicates, phyllosilicates, carbonates, sulfates, hydrated phases, and organic functional groups across a wide-range of samples.
In my research, I conduct micro-FTIR measurements of meteorites and returned asteroid samples in an effort to reveal spatially-resolved compositional heterogeneity, distributions of minerals and organic matter, understand the effects of parent body aqueous and thermal processing, and relate local spectral variations to the chemical and geological evolution of primitive Solar System materials.
Raman spectroscopy and imaging provide spatially resolved information on the molecular structure and mineralogy of extraterrestrial materials at the sub-micrometer scale. By measuring vibrational signatures produced by inelastic scattering, Raman spectroscopy can identify silicates, oxides, sulfides, carbonates, phosphates, and carbonaceous matter, while also revealing structural disorder, phase transformations, and variations in mineral composition.
I apply Raman spectroscopy to meteorites and returned asteroid samples to determine the distribution and structural state of organic matter and minerals. The position, shape, and intensity of diagnostic Raman bands, particularly the D and G bands of carbonaceous material, can be used to evaluate thermal processing, aqueous alteration, shock effects, and parent-body evolution, and complement infrared measurements of these primitive Solar System materials.
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