A simple and rapid method for high-resolution visualization of single-ion tracks

Prompt determination of spatial points of single-ion tracks plays a key role in high-energy particle induced-cancer therapy and gene/plant mutations. In this study, a simple method for the high-resolution visualization of single-ion tracks without etching was developed through the use of polyacrylic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:AIP advances 2014-11, Vol.4 (11), p.117128-117128-8
Main Authors: Omichi, Masaaki, Choi, Wookjin, Sakamaki, Daisuke, Tsukuda, Satoshi, Sugimoto, Masaki, Seki, Shu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY
CELL NUCLEI
CROSS-LINKING
Crosslinking
High resolution
IONS
IRRADIATION
MATERIALS SCIENCE
Methylene bisacrylamide
Mutation
MUTATIONS
NEOPLASMS
Nuclei (cytology)
PARTICLE TRACKS
PARTICLES
PLANTS
Polyacrylic acid
RADICALS
Scars
SPATIAL RESOLUTION
THERAPY
Visualization
WATER VAPOR
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Summary:Prompt determination of spatial points of single-ion tracks plays a key role in high-energy particle induced-cancer therapy and gene/plant mutations. In this study, a simple method for the high-resolution visualization of single-ion tracks without etching was developed through the use of polyacrylic acid (PAA)-N, N’-methylene bisacrylamide (MBAAm) blend films. One of the steps of the proposed method includes exposure of the irradiated films to water vapor for several minutes. Water vapor was found to promote the cross-linking reaction of PAA and MBAAm to form a bulky cross-linked structure; the ion-track scars were detectable at a nanometer scale by atomic force microscopy. This study demonstrated that each scar is easily distinguishable, and the amount of generated radicals of the ion tracks can be estimated by measuring the height of the scars, even in highly dense ion tracks. This method is suitable for the visualization of the penumbra region in a single-ion track with a high spatial resolution of 50 nm, which is sufficiently small to confirm that a single ion hits a cell nucleus with a size ranging between 5 and 20 μm.
ISSN:2158-3226
2158-3226
DOI:10.1063/1.4902164