At QuestPair, we regularly encounter new laboratory technologies and instruments that open up new possibilities for laboratories to create and analyse materials and perform quantitative measurements. Some are incremental improvements on existing methods while others enable entirely new ways of characterising and producing materials. These developments don’t always receive the attention they deserve, even though they can dramatically improve precision, reduce work-load and time spent, or reveal phenomena that were previously invisible.
To explore silent breakthroughs in lab instrumentation and techniques in a more focused way, we’re launching a new blog series: QuestPair Highlights. In each post, we will discuss or feature one or more innovative measurement technologies while highlighting what it enables and why it matters.
To introduce the series, we begin by highlighting three recent developments that reflect how analytical instruments have evolved over the last years.
1. Closed-Loop Optimization in Liquid Chromatography
Liquid chromatography (LC) has long been a core technique in analytical laboratories, but method development can still be time-consuming and dependent on expert intuition and past experiences. That is beginning to change with the integration of closed-loop optimisation.
In recent implementations, LC systems use Bayesian algorithms to refine solvent gradients and temperature conditions in real time. A recent study published in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry shows how these systems can reach near-optimal separation with minimal human input.
Besides speeding up method development, such tools are also improving reproducibility across labs by reducing operator-dependent variability.
2. Cellular-Scale Imaging with MALDI-2
Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) has advanced significantly with the introduction of MALDI-2, which adds a secondary laser to enhance ionisation of materials in a sample. This results in much higher sensitivity and allows researchers to measure the spatial distribution of chemicals with a resolution at or below the cellular scale.
Recent work has demonstrated lateral resolutions of 1-2 µm and improved signal yields across a wide range of biomolecules, enabling detailed metabolic imaging of tissue samples. A comprehensive overview in Mass Spectrometry Reviews discusses how MALDI-2 is moving from specialist research labs into broader biological and clinical applications.
The technique is particularly promising in neuroscience, cancer biology, and drug distribution studies where the spatial context of chemical activity is super important.
3. AI-Driven Interpretation in Spectroscopy
In contract with more invasive methods, spectroscopic techniques are fast and non-destructive. However, interpretation becomes a challenge in complex or unknown mixtures. Over the past year, advances in Machine learning or AI-assisted spectral analysis have begun to close this gap.
By training models on large libraries of known spectra, researchers can now predict structural motifs or functional groups directly from spectral input, for example using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance or IR and Raman spectroscopy.
The use of AI for data processing allows spectroscopic methods to serve as faster filters and early-stage screening tools, which is useful in materials development and quality control. There are many real-life examples, such as in polymer characterisation to detect different kinds of microplastics.
What’s Next
With this short introduction, we have mentioned just a few trends and techniques that have become more prevalent over the last few years. In the next editions of QuestPair Highlights, we’ll continue to spotlight technologies like these: practical, often underreported advances that expand the frontier of measurement in materials science, biotechnology, and engineering.
If you’re developing, adapting, or applying a novel measurement method in your work, please feel free to reach out. We’re always looking to connect and learn more.
📣 We want to hear from you.
Let us share your instrument or technology with the global research community.
📧 Email us at info@questpair.com
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Together, we can bring the next wave of scientific innovation into focus.
Stay tuned for our first highlight – coming soon.
