Highly stable liquid-phase scanning tunneling microscope with dual modes for imaging biomolecules

Area of Science:

• Biophysics
• Molecular Biology
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) is crucial for studying biological molecule structures.
• High stability and imaging precision are vital for STM in solution.
• Existing STM methods face challenges in liquid environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and present a novel, highly stable liquid-phase STM.
• To enable simultaneous high-precision atomic and large-area morphological imaging.
• To investigate biological molecules and dynamic processes in aqueous conditions.

Main Methods:

• Construction of a liquid-phase STM with dual piezoelectric imaging modes.
• Utilizing a small piezoelectric tube for atomic-level imaging.
• Employing a larger piezoelectric tube for morphological and dynamic imaging.

Main Results:

• Achieved high-quality atomic images of graphite, demonstrating excellent stability and precision.
• Measured low drift rates under solution conditions.
• Resolved high-resolution morphologies of plasmid DNA and nucleosome folding dynamics.

Conclusions:

• The new liquid-phase STM provides unprecedented stability and precision for biological imaging in solution.
• The instrument effectively visualizes complex biological structures and dynamic processes.
• This advancement significantly enhances the study of biological samples using high-resolution STM under liquid conditions.