NSF Award
0091549
This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase II project is to develop a new type of atomic force microscope that can image nanometer scale features, in real time, in the physiological environment. In all of its forms, the microscope is probably the most widely used tool in the investigation of biological structure and function. The introduction of the atomic force microscope (AFM) to biology created much excitement because the AFM fills a gap in the capabilities of the microscopes that are available to biologists. The study of living and moving biological systems, on time scales of seconds, with nanometer scale resolution, is becoming increasingly important in biological research. Self-assembled monolayers, proteins, and cellular processes all fall into this category. Existing AFMs fall short of the requirements for these applications because of speed and sensitivity limitations in fluid operation. The project is based on the AFM, for nanometer scale imaging of biological samples that is orders of magnitude faster than current AFMs. Additionally, the new system will be optimized for fluid operation in order to give researchers active control over imaging dynamics. This composite system will allow researchers to probe nanometer scale biological phenomena at speeds never before accessible.<br/><br/>The technology could dramatically increase biological imaging in two ways: (1) faster imaging and (2) higher resolution in fluid. The increase in speed and resolution will help facilitate projects to provide faster results to researchers.
