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Lecture

Atomic Force Microscopy: Applications in Mechanobiology

In course

ME-480: Mechanobiology: how mechanics regulate life

The objective of this course is to expose students to the fundamentals of mechanobiology. We will highlight the technologies that enable the study of living systems including mechanical manipulation and characterization, along with computational modeling f ...

Description

This lecture covers the principles and applications of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) in mechanobiology, focusing on how mechanics regulate life. It explains the essential components of AFM, including the cantilever, substrate, and piezo-based tip scanning setup. The lecture discusses the z-position feedback loop for imaging sample surfaces, cantilever properties, force curve-based sample characterization, force spectroscopy for cell-cell adhesion, imaging modes like contact and dynamic mode, high-resolution imaging techniques, key inventions in AFM, imaging examples, cantilever-based buoyant mass measurements, fluid force microscopy, biophysical aspects of cell separation, and long-term AFM imaging of mycobacteria. It concludes by highlighting the versatility of AFM in various biological applications.

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Instructors (2)

Mahmut Selman Sakar

Alexandre Louis André Persat

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Related concepts (17)

Atomic force microscopy

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) or scanning force microscopy (SFM) is a very-high-resolution type of scanning probe microscopy (SPM), with demonstrated resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, more than 1000 times better than the optical diffraction limit. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is a type of scanning probe microscopy (SPM), with demonstrated resolution on the order of fractions of a nanometer, more than 1000 times better than the optical diffraction limit.

Scanning probe microscopy

Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) is a branch of microscopy that forms images of surfaces using a physical probe that scans the specimen. SPM was founded in 1981, with the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope, an instrument for imaging surfaces at the atomic level. The first successful scanning tunneling microscope experiment was done by Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer. The key to their success was using a feedback loop to regulate gap distance between the sample and the probe.

Infrared spectroscopy

Infrared spectroscopy (IR spectroscopy or vibrational spectroscopy) is the measurement of the interaction of infrared radiation with matter by absorption, emission, or reflection. It is used to study and identify chemical substances or functional groups in solid, liquid, or gaseous forms. It can be used to characterize new materials or identify and verify known and unknown samples. The method or technique of infrared spectroscopy is conducted with an instrument called an infrared spectrometer (or spectrophotometer) which produces an infrared spectrum.

Spectroscopy

Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets the electromagnetic spectra that result from the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter as a function of the wavelength or frequency of the radiation. Matter waves and acoustic waves can also be considered forms of radiative energy, and recently gravitational waves have been associated with a spectral signature in the context of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO).

Raman spectroscopy

Raman spectroscopy (ˈrɑːmən) (named after Indian physicist C. V. Raman) is a spectroscopic technique typically used to determine vibrational modes of molecules, although rotational and other low-frequency modes of systems may also be observed. Raman spectroscopy is commonly used in chemistry to provide a structural fingerprint by which molecules can be identified. Raman spectroscopy relies upon inelastic scattering of photons, known as Raman scattering.

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