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High Resolution Surface Imaging
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While optical and electron microscopy provide sufficient lateral resolution of pharmaceutical materials, the use of high resolution AFM imaging provides unprecedented spatial topographical information of the surface characteristics of pharmaceutical materials on a sub-nanometer scale. The quantitative technique allows characterisation of the surface texture and roughness of processed materials. Nanopharm Ltd has further developed use of AFM-phase imaging to highlight variations in the physico-mechanical properties of mechanical processed particles. |
The uncontrollable nature of mechanical processing (e.g. micronisation, milling) of APIs has been shown to activate materials through the formation of surface dislocations and defects. The degree of mechanical activation between batches may vary significantly and its affect on the physicomechanical and physicochemical properties is not well understood. This novel approach has provided direct characterization of surface induced disorder of processed particle, real-time visualisation of the surface stability induced under various environmental conditions and requirements for the conditioning and relaxation of mechanically activated solids. Back to Technology ›› |