Chemical functionalization of AFM cantilevers

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been a powerful instrument that provides nanoscale imaging of surface features, mainly of rigid metal or ceramic surfaces that can be insulators as well as conductors. Since it has been demonstrated that AFM could be used in aqueous environment such as in water or various buffers from which physiological condition can be maintained, the scope of the application of this imaging technique has been expanded to soft biological materials. In addition, the main usage of AFM has been to image the material and provide the shape of surface, which has also been diversified to molecular-recognition imaging - functional force imaging through force spectroscopy and modification of AFM cantilevers. By immobilizing of certain molecules at the end of AFM cantilever, specific molecules or functionalities can be detected by the combination of intrinsic feature of AFM and chemical modification technique of AFM cantilever. The surface molecule that is complementary to the molecule at the end of AFM probe can be investigated via specificity of molecule-molecule interaction.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2005

Author dc:creator

• Lee, Sunyoung, S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Krystyn J. Van Vliet.

• Materials Science and Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/34205

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/34205