Mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) contains a substantial portion of soil nitrogen (N). MAOM-N could serve as an important N source for crops, b…

Antoine Guisan et Marco Keiluweit, tous deux professeurs à la Faculté des géosciences et de l’environnement de l’UNIL, figurent dans la prestigieuse liste des scientifiques les plus cité·es de 2025, é...

Scientists are presenting new evidence that the worst effects of climate change can’t be avoided without a major transformation of food systems.

Nature Communications - Organic matter associated with reactive soil minerals is assumed to be the most persistent terrestrial carbon pool. This work introduces a novel mechanistic framework for...

CEREGE recruits junior and senior researchers for permanent positions, offering them a framework conducive to the development of their research projects.

Since 2023, the NCCR Microbiomes invites applications for short-term research fellowships. These fellowships will support undergraduate and graduate students and postdocs from outside of the NCCR who ...

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But numbers remain steady for researchers who commit scientific misconduct.

Using longitudinal genealogical data on mentor–mentee relations and their publications, the authors find that mentees trained in larger groups tend to exhibit superior academic performance compared wi...

Today I went to give a climate talk at my old high school in Geneva — and was given a masterclass in our failings. This is the story of a…

This Classic Tenure Track Call invites applications of scientists with a focus on spatial upscaling of soil and plant microbiome mediated ecosystem functions (ESF) in crop- and grasslands.

Interactions among microbes, minerals, and organic matter are key controls on carbon, nutrient, and contaminant dynamics in soils and sediments. However, probing these interactions at relevant scales and through time remains an analytical challenge due to both their complex nature and the need for tools permitting nondestructive and real-time analysis at sufficient spatial resolution. Here, we demonstrate the ability and provide analytical recommendations for the submicron-scale characterization of complex mineral-organic microstructures using optical photothermal infrared (O-PTIR) microscopy. Compared to conventional infrared techniques, O-PTIR spectra collected at submicron resolution of environmentally relevant mineral and organic reference compounds demonstrated similar spectral quality and sensitivity. O-PTIR detection sensitivity was greatest for highly crystalline minerals and potentially for low molecular weight organic compounds. Due to photothermal effects, O-PTIR was more sensitive toward organics than minerals compared to conventional IR approaches, even when organics were mineral-bound. Moreover, O-PTIR resolved mineral-bound and unbound organics in a complex mixture at submicron (<500 nm) resolution. Finally, we provide best practices for artifact-free analysis of organic and mineral samples by determining the appropriate laser power using damage thresholds. Our results highlight the potential of O-PTIR microscopy for nondestructive and time-resolved analysis of dynamic microbe-mineral-organic matter interactions in soils and sediments.