Practical Aspects of 2D IR Microscopy

The desire to investigate the chemical and structural dynamics of spatially heterogenous samples spurred the development of coherent multidimensional microscopy techniques. The effective implementation of these techniques requires tackling an array of technical obstacles. Herein we discuss the implications of 2D IR microscopy and approaches to overcome obstacles in collecting 2D IR images. Practical elements we address include repetition rate, pulse shaping, noise reduction methods, microscope design considerations, and detection limitations. Furthermore, we demonstrate avenues of analysis in 2D IR microscopy by showcasing images of two different room temperature ionic liquid samples. First, we show analysis of an ionic liquid microdroplet. Second, we show the impact of copper electrodes and an applied potential on an ionic liquid electrolyte. The analysis techniques we use include spatially tracking center line slopes, signal intensities, and cross-peaks ratios.