Flow Cells for Electrochemistry

In sequencing applications, a flow cell is a specialized chamber where fluidic reagents pass over a substrate to enable chemical reactions used for reading genetic material. While distinct from electrochemistry flow cells, both share the core principle of controlled liquid delivery over an active surface for real-time analysis.

In HPLC, a flow cell is the optical chamber through which the mobile phase passes for detection, typically via UV-Vis or fluorescence. Electrochemistry flow cells differ by focusing on in-situ AFM/STM imaging and electrical measurement rather than optical detection of separated compounds.

Molecular Imaging's liquid cell designs are compatible with acids, bases, and organic solvents, allowing researchers to study a wide range of electrolyte chemistries including those used in lithium-ion battery and fuel cell research without compromising cell integrity or imaging performance.

Yes, Molecular Imaging offers a wide collection of liquid cell designs engineered for compatibility with modular AFM/STM platforms such as the PicoPlus and 5420 PicoAFM systems, allowing researchers to integrate electrochemical flow cells into their existing imaging workflow.

Common applications include corrosion studies, lithium-ion battery interface research, fuel cell electrode analysis, and electrochemical surface potential mapping, all of which require stable, real-time liquid imaging environments to observe nanoscale surface behavior during electrochemical processes.

Flow cells allow researchers to image electrode surfaces in-situ while electrolyte flows across them, capturing dynamic changes such as solid-electrolyte interphase formation and dendrite growth in real time, which is critical for understanding lithium-ion battery degradation and performance mechanisms.