Jacob Martin

Date of Award

Fall 2023

Document Type

Open Access Thesis

Department

Physics and Astronomy

First Advisor

Thomas Crawford

Abstract

Drawing from magnetic particle imaging principles, magnetic particle spectroscopy (MPS) serves as a valuable tool employing superparamagnetic iron-oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) in diverse applications ranging from medical imaging to biosensing and the comprehensive study of magnetic particles’ characteristics. MPS leverages the nonlinear response exhibited by SPIONs when a external magnetic field is applied, enabling a highly sensitive method for examining biological systems and more. However, conventional MPS setups demand a high particle concentration of approximately 10^15 particles per liter to generate a detectable response. The first objective of this work is to simulate the dynamics of a system with the ability to measure a singular SPION, and the second is to fabricate and assess the true capabilities of the proposed system. Simulations are created utilizing a symmetric coplanar stripline on a dielectric as a variable excitation source with broad bandwidth for high-frequency measurements. Detection is performed with a highly sensitive tunnel magnetoresistive (TMR) sensor extracted from a magnetic disk drive. The simulations and system measurements presented here compellingly demonstrate that single-particle MPS is not only feasible but also capable of achieving driving frequencies high enough to explore individual SPIONs in the microwave regime and beyond. This unexplored topic holds the potential to significantly enhance our comprehension of magnetism in nanoscale geometries and allow for extensive customization and understanding of SPIONs.

Rights

© 2024, Jacob Martin

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