Nano-Scale Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry: A Paradigm Shift in Soil Science

Table 1

Biological processes and methodologies at various spatial scales [21].

Processes	Physical scale	Techniques
		Gas fluxes
	cm	SOM fractionation
		Microbial biomass
		Inorganic nutrients
	mm
	Roots	Molecular techniques
	Aggregates
	Sand
	μm	Computer-aided X-ray tomography
Microbe-plant nutrient transfer	Silt	Mass spectrometry
	Clay	Microsampling/microscopy
Nutrient cycling	nm	NanoSIMS