Antifouling self-assembled monolayers on microelectrodes for patterning biomolecules

We present a procedure for forming a poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) trimethoxysilane self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on a silicon substrate with gold microelectrodes. The PEG-SAM is formed in a single assembly step and prevents biofouling on silicon and gold surfaces. The SAM is used to coat microelectrodes patterned with standard, positive-tone lithography. Using the microtubule as an example, we apply a DC voltage to induce electrophoretic migration to the SAM-coated electrode in a reversible manner. A flow chamber is used for imaging the electrophoretic migration and microtubule patterning in situ using epifluorescence microscopy. This method is generally applicable to biomolecule patterning, as it employs electrophoresis to immobilize target molecules and thus does not require specific molecular interactions. Further, it avoids problems encountered when attempting to pattern the SAM molecules directly using lithographic techniques. The compatibility with electron beam lithography allows this method to be used to pattern biomolecules at the nanoscale.