By pairing the TSI® Condensation Particle Counter (CPC) 3750 with the Nano Enhancer 3757, the 1nm CPC 3757-50 is created. The 1nm CPC can be used as a standalone CPC, or it can be employed within a 1nm Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) system.
The 1nm CPC 3757-50 enables the user to measure aerosol concentrations that include the smallest particles approaching 1 nm. The unique design greatly enhances measurement response time, produces a sharply defined lower size detection limit (counting efficiency curve) and minimizes diffusion losses of ultrafine and nanoparticles.
The Nano Enhancer 3757 detects particles as small as 1 nm in geometric diameter (1.4 nm electrical mobility equivalent diameter), using a unique sheath air flow design that confines the aerosol flow path near the centerline of the condenser. An aerosol sample is drawn continuously through a capillary and mixed with clean, dry sheath air flow that passes through a heated saturator where Diethylene glycol (DEG) is vaporized and diffuses into the sheath flow stream. Together, the aerosol sample and DEG vapor pass into a cooled condenser where the DEG vapor becomes supersaturated and ready to condense. Particles present in the sample stream serve as condensation nuclei. Once condensation begins, particles that are larger than a threshold diameter quickly grow into droplets large enough to be easily detected by a conventional butanol-based CPC.
Particle number concentration data at 50 Hz time resolution provides an unparalleled degree of visibility into aerosol processes. Building on multiple generations of experience designing and manufacturing CPCs, the TSI® 1nm CPC is a powerful tool for addressing some of the most challenging aerosol questions.
*Geometric size, with negatively charged NaCl, depends on particle composition and charge
